A family is sharing their story after a frightening ordeal off Australia’s coast ended in a rescue — made possible, authorities say, by the quick decisions of the oldest child.
A mother and her children were pulled out to sea while kayaking and paddle boarding off Quindalup in Geographe Bay on Friday, Jan. 30, according to a news release from the Western Australia Police Force’s South West District.
As daylight began to fade and conditions worsened, a 13-year-old in the group “decided to return to shore” despite rough seas, police said.
The boy paddled briefly before his kayak took on water, forcing him to swim the remaining two nautical miles back to land.
The teen, Austin Applebee, is being credited with helping save his mother Joanne, 47, his brother Beau, 12, and his sister Grace, 8, according to the BBC and the Associated Press.
“I didn’t think I was a hero — I just did what I did,” Austin told the BBC.
Joanne said the family had been having “a bit of fun” when she realized her children had gone “a bit too far” out, according to the BBC. Soon after, she said, “the wind picked up,” and they lost their oars, drifting farther into open water.
Unwilling to leave her younger children, Joanne said the family made a difficult call: Austin would try to reach shore and get help. She told Australia’s ABC News it was “one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make.”
Austin set off in the kayak, but it capsized. He then decided to abandon both the kayak and his life jacket, explaining that the jacket made it harder to swim through the waves rather than simply float, according to ABC News.
Austin told the BBC he spent the next two hours swimming while praying, thinking of Christian songs, and keeping “happy thoughts” to push forward. He said he also kept his family in mind the entire time.
Around 6 p.m. local time, Austin reached shore, called for help, and then passed out.
“I said, ‘I need helicopters, I need planes, I need boats, my family’s out at sea.’ I was very calm about it,” he recalled, according to ABC News.
Austin’s mother and two siblings were found at about 8:30 p.m. local time, police said. They were roughly 14 kilometers — about 7.5 nautical miles — offshore when they were located, according to the BBC.
All four were treated at Busselton Health Campus afterward, authorities said.
Austin said he was grateful for the rapid response from emergency services, according to the BBC. His mother, speaking to ABC News, said she was simply thankful they were together: “We made it, we’re alive and that’s the most important thing.”
