What began as a relaxed Christmas Day paddle in southern Australia turned into a tense search-and-rescue operation after two paddleboarders were carried far from their starting point by worsening conditions.
Victoria Police said the pair — identified by Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) as a 51-year-old woman and her 17-year-old stepson — launched from the Portarlington caravan park jetty at about 3 p.m. local time on Thursday, Dec. 25.
Not long after, police said conditions deteriorated and the two were pushed further out into the bay. When they failed to return, a relative contacted authorities around 5 p.m., prompting an urgent search.
Police later confirmed the paddleboarders were not wearing life jackets and had been swept more than 6 miles from Portarlington to Wyndham Harbour. They were located around 6:20 p.m. local time.
“Local police units on the ground, Air Wing, Life Saving Victoria and Queenscliff Coast Guards assisted in the search before Air Wing officers spotted the duo,” Victoria Police said.
“They were laying on their paddleboards and waving for assistance,” the statement added.
Rescuers pulled both people — along with their boards — from the water. Police said they were cold and exhausted but otherwise unharmed.
Acting Senior Sgt. Michael Quirk of the water police told ABC the search took place in choppy conditions, with strong south-westerly winds reaching up to 35 knots.
“The search area was quite large given the time frames and the distance someone could move in those sorts of conditions,” Quirk said.
He added that staying with their boards likely made the difference. “No doubt their lives were saved … given the conditions, and they were probably at some point moving further away from land, and there was no other real assistance out there for them,” Quirk told ABC.
Other Victoria water rescues the same day
Police also responded to two other water-related emergencies in Victoria on Thursday, rescuing four more people.
In one incident, authorities were called to Lake King in Paynesville about 1:30 p.m. local time after a report of a kayaker in trouble. Police said the man had not been seen for two hours and was observed struggling before his kayak rolled.
“Water Police, Air Wing and the coast guard searched for the Hoppers Crossing man before he was spotted by the Air Wing just before 3 p.m.,” Victoria Police said.
“A smoke marker was dropped by the Air Wing, highlighting the man’s location, where the 41-year-old was picked up by the coastguard and returned unharmed to shore,” the statement added.
In another incident at Westernport Bay, police were alerted around 2:10 p.m. local time after a mother and her two teen daughters ran into trouble near the Corinella jetty. The trio — all wearing life jackets — had gone into the water to retrieve a kayak that drifted away, but police said current and strong winds pushed them a significant distance from shore.
They were later spotted and a rescue helicopter responded.
“The women were all winched to safety and dropped back to Corinella without injury,” Victoria Police said.
