By Catholics for Catholics
Austin Appelbee, a 13-year-old in Australia, heroically swam for several hours to obtain rescue for his family last week. Austin credited God for the rescue, saying, “I don’t think it was actually me [swimming]… It was God the whole time. I kept on praying, kept on praying. I said to God, ‘I’ll get baptized.'” Austin went to church the following Sunday.
What started as a normal day at the beach for the Appelbee family quickly became dangerous. BBC reports. Austin, his two siblings, and his mother took two paddleboards and a kayak into initially shallow water at Quindalup beach. The wind picked up, pulling the family further out into the ocean, and they lost their paddleboard oars.
Austin’s mom, Joanne, didn’t know what to do. She didn’t want to leave her children alone while she sought help. So she stayed with her 12-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter, sending Austin back to the shore in the kayak to get help – without realizing the kayak was already damaged and taking on water. He lost an oar and began paddling with his arm, until the kayak flipped. He had already been out for two hours at this point.
“Not today, not today, not today. I have to keep on going,” Austin recalled thinking.
NEW: 13-year-old Australian boy swims for four hours in cold and dangerous waters to save his mom and siblings who were swept into the ocean, says God is who got him to shore.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) February 3, 2026
The family was on kayaks & paddleboards when they were swept about 2.5 miles out to sea.
After a… pic.twitter.com/Gg7OctvHi4
The waves became bigger and he lost sight of his family. Austin got rid of his life jacket which was slowing him down and began to swim two nautical miles to shore. Another two hours later, he made it to shore, located his mother’s phone, and called for help. He passed out after making the call.
Thankfully, a rescue crew had been alerted and they located Joanne and the children 8.5 miles offshore – all freezing and under fading light by this time – but all were okay. They were all treated at the hospital for minor injuries.
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