Western Australian police have released the recording of the emergency phone call made by a 13-year-old boy who swam for four hours to raise the alarm for his Irish-born mother and two younger siblings when they got into difficulty at sea.
The Western Australia Police Force said Austin Appelbee’s "calm, clear communication" helped the emergency services to respond to the situation.
Austin’s vital “000” call is described as “textbook” in terms of saving lives. It is featured in a new podcast series on the work of the Western Australia Police Force.
Austin and his mother, Joanne, who is from Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan, and siblings Beau (12) and Grace (8) were kayaking and paddleboarding in Geographe Bay near Quindalup on January 30th when they got into difficulty.
The police force says that Austin "made the courageous decision to return to shore in fading light and deteriorating conditions".
"Once on shore, Austin ran a further two kilometres along the beach before reaching a mobile phone where he was able to call for help," the force said.
In his call to the emergency services, the 13 year-old explained that he and his two siblings and his mother had "got lost" while out at sea and they needed a helicopter to "go find them".
Austin said he was "really scared" as he didn't know of the condition of his family. He told the emergency phone operator he also felt he needed an ambulance as he believed he had hypothermia.
Police Forward Commander Acting Sergeant Andrew McDonnell said that “the situation the Appelbee family found themselves in was extremely dire”.
“They were in real trouble, and time was absolutely critical given how long they had been in the water and with daylight fading,”McDonnell, who coordinated the search and rescue effort, said.
"What Austin did was nothing short of extraordinary. His bravery and courage in those conditions were remarkable, and his actions were pivotal in bringing about a successful outcome,”he said.
Austin’s mother had said it was one of the hardest decisions she ever had to make to ask Austin to try and get to shore and get some help.
Austin Appelbee had to swim 4km after his kayak sank, ditching his lifejacket en route, and he then ran 2km to raise help.
Listen to Appelbee’s description as “the coolest kid ever” and “a national hero” on the Western Australia Police Force podcast from about 7 minutes below.
