‘Superhuman effort’: The Australian teen who swam in shark-infested waters to save family

One can call it a swim of a lifetime!

A 13-year-old is being hailed as a hero after he swam four kilometres through rough waters to help his mother and two siblings off the coast of Western Australia.

Initially, the boy tried to paddle back to shore on his kayak before it took on water in the rough seas, leaving him to swim back to the shore to raise an alarm for his missing mother and siblings.

"The bravery, strength and courage shown by this family were extraordinary, especially the young fella who swam 4 km to raise the alarm," Naturaliste Volunteer Marine Rescue Group said.

Here is all you need to know about the incident.

A 'superhuman' swim

It all unfolded on January 30 at Geographe Bay in Australia when a family set out for paddleboarding and kayaking. However, strong winds sent their inflatables drifting off course, said the police.

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As a result, the 13-year-old teen began paddling back to shore to raise an alarm. But, his kayak began to fill water, forcing him to abandon it and swimming the last four kilometres.

The boy's efforts to swim through choppy waters have been hailed as 'superhuman'.

During the first two hours, he swam wearing a life jacket on. But he later doubted if he could make it with a life jacket, so he ditched it. For the next two hours, he swam without wearing a life jacket.

"He swam in, he reckons, the first two hours with a life jacket on," Naturaliste Marine Rescue commander Paul Bresland told ABC News. "The brave fella thought he's not going to make it with a life jacket on, so he ditched it, and he swam the next two hours without a life jacket."

News website BBC, quoting the police, stated the boy raised the alarm by 18:00 local time on Friday evening, setting off a major search for his missing relatives near Quindalup Beach, close to Busselton.

Narrating his ordeal, the teen said: “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 two km to go get to the phone.”

The boy's mother was 47 years old while her other son was aged 12 and a daughter was only eight years old.

A massive rescue operation follows

Bresland told ABC News that Marine teams were alerted, including WA Water Police, local marine rescue volunteers and Western Australia's Rescue Helicopter. A huge search and rescue operation was launched to find the family members who had been swept away from the shore.

The rescuers found the mother and her children around 8:30 pm by a rescue helicopter clinging to a paddleboard about 14 kilometres offshore.

"A volunteer marine rescue vessel was directed to their location and all three were successfully rescued and returned to shore," the force told BBC.

According to local media, all three people were wearing life jackets, which contributed to their survival.

Police said the family was checked by paramedics and taken to hospital, but they were later discharged and stopped by to thank the marine rescue crew, according to the ABC.

Inspector James Bradley said the incident served as a stark reminder of how fast conditions at sea can shift.

Australia's beaches witness shark attacks

Notably, the boy had to swim through shark-infested waters. Moreover, Australia has been rocked by four shark attacks in quick succession. Dozens of beaches along the country’s east coast, including in Sydney, have been closed following the “unprecedented” attacks.

Bull sharks are believed to be behind the recent attacks that have resulted in the closure of around 40 beaches along the coast of New South Wales (NSW). This comes after days of heavy rain that washed into the harbour and nearby beaches, forming ideal conditions for these species.

In the most recent attack, a surfer was bitten by a shark that knocked him off his board near Point Plomer Beach on the NSW Mid North Coast on January 20.

With inputs from agencies