US EditionAustralian teen swam hours to shore to get help for mother and siblings swept out to sea
- On Tuesday, Austin Appelbee, 13-year-old boy, swam for four hours through choppy waters off western Australia to reach shore and raise the alarm after his mother and two younger siblings were swept out to sea.
- A routine water outing turned dangerous when high waves dragged the family offshore after flipping boards and filling their kayak with water on Friday afternoon.
- He abandoned his life jacket and swam unencumbered, at times singing the `Thomas the Tank Engine` theme; he said, `I was very puffed out, but I couldn’t feel how tired I was` and kept going by repeating `Alright, not today, not today, not today`.
- After reaching shore he called for boats, helicopters and planes; rescuers found his family clinging to a paddleboard off Quindalup, and Paul Bresland said the teen’s four-hour swim saved them.
- Published in Dawn on February 4th, 2026, the story drew rapid local attention, with rescuers calling the teen’s four-hour swim `superhuman`.
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44 Articles
A 13-year-old Australian boy who swam for hours to ask for help for his family after they were dragged into the ocean stream told the BBC: “I don’t consider myself a hero, I just did what I had to do.”
Svenska Dagbladet
Dagens Nyheter.Austin Appelbee swam for hours to save his family. The 13-year-old's heroism in Western Australia is now being recognized worldwide. "I was thinking about 'Thomas and Friends,' trying to put happy things in my head," he told Australian media.
A 13-year-old boy has become a hero after he saved his family from drowning after they were swept out to sea by winds and waves in a kayak and inflatable paddleboard following a sudden change in weather off the southwestern tip of Australia. The boy swam for four hours to shore and then ran two kilometers to call for help, which he did.
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