Displaying items by tag: Joanne Appelbee

What began as a simple family day at the beach off Western Australia became a terrifying ten-hour ordeal for Joanne Appelbee and her children. Strong winds carried them far beyond the safety of the shore, leaving them clinging to paddleboards as daylight faded. Realising help was needed, Joanne sent her 13-year-old son Austin back to raise the alarm. What followed was extraordinary. After a damaged kayak capsized, Austin was forced to swim four kilometres through rough seas, eventually abandoning his lifejacket and pressing on exhausted and afraid. For hours he prayed, sang Christian songs, and fixed his thoughts on his family, not knowing whether they were still alive. Reaching land at last, he made the call which triggered a rescue operation. Hours later, Joanne and her younger children were found alive, cold and frightened but safe. Though rescuers called his effort 'superhuman', Austin simply described it as doing what had to be done.