13 year old swims 4km to save family stranded at sea
- Thread starter Trade
- Start date
Trade
Well-known Member
A teenager praised for his “superhuman” hero effort after swimming 4km through shark-frequented waters to save his family, who were swept out to sea, has described the moment he collapsed on the beach only to get back up to sprint to a phone.
A multi-agency deployment was needed save an adult and two children last Friday after they were blown out to sea on their inflatable paddleboards and kayaks in waters off Quindalup, along Western Australia’s southern coast.
The family were on a holiday when strong offshore winds pushed them offshore.
Marine authorities were only alerted to the family’s predicament after the 13-year-old boy made his way back to shore.
The child was forced to swim the rest of the way after his kayak began taking on water.
The waters are known for their frequent shark sightings, with WA’s SharkSmart website tracking multiple sightings along the south west coast in the past week alone.
“I just said ‘all right, not today, not today, not today’,” the boy told Sky News.
“I do breastroke, I do freestyle, I do survival backstroke.
“I hit the bottom of the beach and I just collapsed, and then after that I had to sprint 2km to go get to the phone.”
How a 13-year-old’s ‘superhuman’ swim turned a family holiday into a rescue epic
A multi-agency deployment was needed save an adult and two children last Friday after they were blown out to sea on their inflatable paddleboards and kayaks in waters off Quindalup, along Western Australia’s southern coast.
The family were on a holiday when strong offshore winds pushed them offshore.
Marine authorities were only alerted to the family’s predicament after the 13-year-old boy made his way back to shore.
The child was forced to swim the rest of the way after his kayak began taking on water.
The waters are known for their frequent shark sightings, with WA’s SharkSmart website tracking multiple sightings along the south west coast in the past week alone.
“I just said ‘all right, not today, not today, not today’,” the boy told Sky News.
“I do breastroke, I do freestyle, I do survival backstroke.
“I hit the bottom of the beach and I just collapsed, and then after that I had to sprint 2km to go get to the phone.”
How a 13-year-old’s ‘superhuman’ swim turned a family holiday into a rescue epic
David777
Well-known Member
- Location
- Silicon Valley
That is about 2.5 miles in 75F degree western Australia water temperatures. He removed his life jacket, apparently because it interfered with making progress moving towards shore, so free swam most of the distance to shore. Although I have swam at times all my life, my thin body does not float well, so have always been afraid of life and death circumstances where I might need to swim long distances. Something plenty of our ancestors met their end trying to endure. The visceral thought of drowning under water, given occasional experiences as a kid swimming underwater as far as I could hold my breath while being aware of the impossibility of continuing once a limit has been reached, has always been a rather frightening horrible way I've imagined to possibly die.
josephine
New Member
- Location
- Maybe it’s San Jose
Yesterday I saw a report about this kid on BBC, and I have to say, he’s really brave. He saved his family with his courageous actions, and I’ve seen photos of him with his family, he seems like a really shy kid.
jujube
SF VIP
Wowza! I'd love to have that kid in my corner! Brave young man.
Warrigal
SF VIP
- Location
- Sydney, Australia
I am over awed by the boy's tenacity and his love for his family. His mother also deserves praise for her part in keeping her other children alive until rescued. Inside she must have been dreading losing all of her children and I suspect that is what gave her the strength to stay alive. It was for love of them that she didn't give up and simply go under the waves.
