A 13-year-old boy is his family's hero after swimming for hours in open ocean on Australia's west coast to raise the alarm when they were swept out to sea.
Austin Appelbee and his family were paddleboarding and kayaking south of Perth on Friday when rough conditions pushed them out to sea at around 6pm on Friday.
He began to head to shore in his kayak to raise the alarm, but was forced to abandon it when it took on water — swimming more than 4km back to the shore.
Austin said he was thinking of his family to motivate him throughout his swim back to shore.
"I just said 'alright. Not today, not today, not today'. The waves were massive. I did breaststroke, I did freestyle, I did survival backstroke," he told Nine News.
"I hit the bottom of the beach and I just collapsed and then after that I had to sprint two kilometres to go get to the phone."
Austin's mother Joanne and the two other kids were found clinging to a paddleboard around 14km offshore after spending more than eight hours in the water.
Joanne said all her children learned how to swim at a young age and encouraged other families to teach their kids.
"There's no bigger word to describe him other than proud," she told Nine News.
"I'm speechless at his efforts, but at the same time, I knew he could do it."
The morning's headlines in 90 seconds, including Christchurch residents kicking up a stink, the US says it shot down an Iranian drone, and the hero teen who saved his whole family. (Source: 1News)
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