r/BeAmazed • u/Electronic-Bus-3494 • 20d ago

Miscellaneous / Others A 13-year-old boy swam 4 kilometers through rough ocean for four hours after his mother and two siblings were swept out to sea near Dunsborough, Western Australia. He ran 2 kilometers barefoot to call for help. Rescuers found them clinging to paddleboards 14 km offshore after 10 hours.

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Austin Appelbee was 13. His mother Joanne and two younger siblings were swept out to sea. He tried a kayak first, but it started filling with water, so he abandoned it and swam. Alone. Through choppy water. As daylight faded. Four kilometers. Nearly four hours.

He reached shore, ran another two kilometers barefoot to their accommodation, and used his mother's phone to call for help. A major marine rescue operation launched. Rescuers later found Joanne and the two younger children clinging to paddleboards about 14 kilometers offshore. They had been drifting for nearly 10 hours.

Authorities credited Austin's actions with bringing rescuers to them. A 13-year-old with nothing but willpower and bare feet.

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474

u/Enlightened_Gardener 19d ago

I’m a local and we’re all in awe of this kid. He’d failed his swim certificate for a 350m swim !

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u/LucifersAdv0cate 19d ago

Is there much risk of sharks in that area? I thought western Australia had a lot of them.

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u/hippodribble 19d ago

No risk. Absolute certainty.

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u/Competitive-Basil958 19d ago

Aww man, my comprehension is shit. So yes there is sharks? Or you are certain there is no risk in that area.

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u/minimuscleR 19d ago

there are not that many shark attacks. Its the riskiest place in Australia still, but the chances are very low especially in rougher weather where the sharks are unlikely to come closer to shore.

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u/AgsSpecGolfSwing 19d ago

Absolutely fuck swimming in open ocean in the waters of WA ive surfed the entire coast line of Australia, and WA is by far the scariest

Constant whale carcasses wash ashore in WA aswell

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u/Illustrious-Tart4305 19d ago

Dude We've had 3 fatal shark attacks in the last 4 months. Id say its something.

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u/minimuscleR 19d ago

sure maybe right now its bad, I'm talking historically though. Historically there is less than 30 a year Australia-wide. Which considering the other dangers in the water is really low.

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u/AgsSpecGolfSwing 19d ago

Bro WA open ocean is literally jam packed with sharks there are constant shark attacks along the WA coast line

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u/idontmakehash 19d ago

What does Washington have to do with Australia /s

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u/Inevitable-Level-687 19d ago

Don't even joke about that or every Australian in a hundred kilometre radius of wherever you are in the world will hunt you for sport

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u/SpaceTurtles 19d ago

What if I'm in Washington?

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u/VectorB 19d ago

Dont worry, they will probably go to Washington State instead of the real Washington.

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u/SpaceTurtles 19d ago

But that's what WA is.

Washington is DC.

Washington is WA.

I'm in Washington.

I hope that helps.

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u/LucifersAdv0cate 18d ago

I'm British and I'm ashamed to say it took me way longer into adulthood than I'm proud to admit to understand the difference between those places. I remember thinking it was a strange place to put the capital and why is there so much crime in that part of the country. I'm a former Royal Marine Captain as well so I'm fairly well read and follow geopolitics.

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u/Inevitable-Level-687 19d ago

Americans go five seconds without making something about them challenge failed

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u/SpaceTurtles 19d ago

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the State of Washington (WA) exists and is home to millions of people.

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u/Competitive-Basil958 19d ago

Thank you, I feel silly

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u/f1zzo 19d ago

Keep being silly, it's the best way of being

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u/Jackoby_Jones 19d ago

Don’t feel silly, the “no risk” comment was very confusing!

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u/LucifersAdv0cate 19d ago

I once left Frazier island by plane and could see sharks in the water and I understand they are also often visible from Indian Head. So I was surprised to see people surfing there. This was around 2005. Do locals just consider it very low risk?

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u/AgsSpecGolfSwing 19d ago

Majority of aussie surfers just don’t care if the surfs good enough lol and theres something about being out in groups to solo surfing, why this kid swimming alone in open ocean is even more terrifying

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u/hippodribble 19d ago

You'd be unlucky not to find one in the area. 😬

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u/Enlightened_Gardener 19d ago

You’re still more likely to be killed by a cow than by a shark in Australia.

But yes, there are also lots of sharks.

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u/Jackoby_Jones 19d ago

In Australia overall, yes. But when you’re 4km out to sea I’d say the shark becomes more likely than the cow.

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u/mt9943 19d ago

You must be forgetting all about those dangerous Dugongs that lurk the waters

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u/largemarjj 19d ago

That's why you bring extra pokeballs

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u/Itub2000 14d ago

Nope, still the cow.

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u/wonderwall879 19d ago

99% of sharks are not an innate threat to humans. Same as orca's.

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u/Itchy-Spirit5120 19d ago

We lost a man only a few days ago off a busy city beach, his body has not been found. So yeah, lots of sharks.

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u/bkeating84 19d ago

Did they give it to him after this?

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u/Zeestars 19d ago

Yes they did

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u/mawiwawi 17d ago

They better give him his certificate after this.

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u/[deleted] 16d ago

I live in Toronto and this story totally brightened my day. What an amazing young man. How was his heroism celebrated?