The incident occurred on the afternoon of January 30 near Quindalup, about 200 kilometres south of Perth, where Joanne Appleby was vacationing with her children—Austin, Beau and Grace. According to authorities and local media reports, the family had gone out on a paddleboard close to shore when strong winds and rising waves caused them to lose their paddles and drift rapidly into open water.
As conditions worsened, Joanne Appleby realised that help would be needed from the shore. She asked her eldest child, Austin, to attempt the swim back, believing he was the strongest among them. Austin entered the water as daylight faded, while his mother and siblings, wearing life jackets, clung to the paddleboard as it continued to drift farther out to sea.
Austin later told police that he swam continuously for several kilometres, focusing on reaching land to get help. After covering an estimated four kilometres, he reached the shore, then ran approximately two kilometres to find a phone and contact emergency services around 6 pm. Exhausted, he collapsed shortly after making the call and was taken to hospital.
Meanwhile, Joanne and the two younger children remained stranded at sea for nearly 10 hours in cold, dark and increasingly violent conditions. Police said large waves repeatedly separated the children from the paddleboard during the ordeal. A coordinated search operation involving marine rescue teams was launched following Austin’s alert.
Rescuers eventually located Joanne, Beau and Grace around 14 kilometres offshore late at night and brought them safely back to shore. Western Australia Police Inspector James Bradley credited the successful rescue to the teenager’s actions, calling his endurance and presence of mind “exceptional.”
Austin, who has since returned to school but is walking with crutches due to severe leg pain, said he did not see himself as a hero. He attributed his survival to basic swimming skills and water safety lessons he had attended as a child.
Authorities have used the incident to reiterate safety warnings about sudden weather changes along Australia’s coastline and the risks of drifting even short distances offshore.
