The 13-year-old boy braved rough seas in Western Australia to reach the shore and raise the alarm; rescuers then found his mother and siblings. The family were on kayaks and paddleboards when winds picked up and dragged them out to sea.
Austin Applebee said that despite years of lessons he had found 350 meter swims tiring in the past – Image: ABC/AP Photo/picture alliance
A young boy swam for several hours in rough seas to alert authorities to his mother and younger brother and sister being stranded off the coast of Quindalup in Western Australia.
Police said that Austin Applebee swam around 4 kilometers (roughly 2.5 miles) to raise the alarm after his family got into difficulties on their hired kayaks and paddleboards.
He and his family were on vacation in the coastal tourist area near Australia’s southwest corner, south of Perth.
How he swam to shore and called for help
The boy set off on an inflatable kayak that was taking in water, then abandoned that and swam. He was wearing a life jacket for roughly the first two hours but ditched it when he realized it was slowing him down too much.
“The waves are massive and I have no life jacket on,” Applebee said on Tuesday. “I just kept thinking, ‘just keep swimming, just keep swimming.'”
Applebee was able to call police, alert them that his family was stranded in rough seas off the coast, and give them information on the kayaks and equipment they had with them.
Mother Joanne said it was one of ‘hardest decisions’ she’d ever had to make, asking her eldest to swim for shore and seek help solo – Image: AuBC/AP Photo/picture alliance
A search helicopter found the mother Joanne Applebee and Austin’s brother Beau, 12, and sister Grace, 8, clinging to a paddleboard, having drifted some 14 kilometers offshore during 10 hours at sea.
“The actions of the 13-year-old boy cannot be praised highly enough — his determination and courage ultimately saved the lives of his mother and siblings,” Police Inspector James Bradley said.
Using crutches after exertion equivalent to two marathons
Austin did not immediately know that his family had survived. He had passed out and was taken to a medical facility after running to his mother’s phone to call for help.
On waking, he said he worried that he had not been fast enough. But he was told the good news and given crutches, with medics saying his swim lasting around four hours in rough seas was akin to having run two marathons.
His mother Joanne said she had asked her eldest boy, a strong swimmer, to seek help, knowing she had to stay with the younger children.
“One of the hardest decisions I ever had to make was to say to Austin: ‘Try and get to shore and get some help. This could get really serious really quickly,'” she told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
Western Australia state premier Roger Cook praised Applebee on social media, saying “This is what a true West Aussie hero looks like.”
DW.com/NAN 4-1-26
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