{"id":2567408,"date":"2026-02-07T14:03:01","date_gmt":"2026-02-07T19:03:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/superhuman-boy-13-swims-4-hours-in-frigid-water-then-runs-over-a-mile-to-rescue-his-mother-sister-and-brother-lost-at-sea\/"},"modified":"2026-02-07T14:05:35","modified_gmt":"2026-02-07T19:05:35","slug":"superhuman-boy-13-swims-4-hours-in-frigid-water-then-runs-over-a-mile-to-rescue-his-mother-sister-and-brother-lost-at-sea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/superhuman-boy-13-swims-4-hours-in-frigid-water-then-runs-over-a-mile-to-rescue-his-mother-sister-and-brother-lost-at-sea\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Superhuman&#8217; Boy, 13, Swims 4 Hours in Frigid Water then Runs Over a Mile to Rescue His Mother, Sister, and Brother Lost at Sea"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">48<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsuperhuman-boy-13-swims-4-hours-in-frigid-water-then-runs-over-a-mile-to-rescue-his-mother-sister-and-brother-lost-at-sea%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2567408&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A 13-year-old Australian boy, Austin appelbee, saved his family after they were swept out to sea in Geographe Bay, near quindalup, Western Australia. While they had paddleboards and a kayak, Austin followed his mother\u2019s instructions and kayaked for about four hours toward shore, even leaving his life jacket after two hours to move faster. He collapsed from exhaustion on reaching land but then sprinted two kilometers to find a phone and call for help. Rescue teams, including helicopters and a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >volunteer marine vessel<\/a>, found the family around 8:30 PM and brought them to safety. Authorities described Austin\u2019s actions as \u201csuperhuman,\u201d and he attributed his survival to God,saying,\u201cIt was God the whole time\u201d and that he kept praying,with the famous line \u201cjust keep swimming.\u201d The story received wide coverage, highlighting his faith, courage, and the relief of a family brought home safe.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>In what can only be described as an act of God, a 13-year-old Australian boy managed to save his family when he swam for four hours back to shore after they were swept away from strong winds and waves.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/world\/it-was-god-the-whole-time-13-year-old-australian-boy-swims-for-four-hours-to-rescue-family-ws-l-9877636.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News18<\/a> reported Austin Appelbee, of Perth was on vacation with his mother Joanne, 13-year-old brother Beau, and 8-year-old sister Grace in Quindalup last Friday when the three were swept away into Geographe Bay.<\/p>\n<p>The family had paddleboards and a kayak when it happened. Austin managed to get instructions from his mother, then took off towards the shore, kayaking four hours. He left his life jacket behind two hours in so he could move faster.<\/p>\n<p>Despite collapsing exhausted when he reached the shore, he sprinted two kilometers, reaching a phone around 6:00 PM.<\/p>\n<p>Rescue helicopters and boats found the three around 8:30 PM and they were rescued by a volunteer marine rescue vessel.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Authorities credited Austin&rsquo;s description of his family in helping locate them while his efforts are now being called &ldquo;superhuman.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The significance of the moment was not lost on Austin, feeling God&rsquo;s presence in guiding him to save his family.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/despite-insistence-by-democrat-politicians-and-medical-elites-empirical-evidence-does-not-conclusively-show-that-masks-reduce-the-spread-of-covid\/\" title=\"Despite Insistence by Democrat Politicians and Medical Elites, Empirical Evidence DOES NOT Conclusively Show that Masks Reduce the Spread of COVID\">don&#038;rsquo<\/a>;t think it was actually me [swimming]&hellip; It was God the whole time. I kept on praying, kept on praying. I said to God, &lsquo;I&rsquo;ll get baptised.&rsquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The waves are massive, and I have no life jacket on&hellip; I just kept thinking &lsquo;just keep swimming, just keep swimming.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Channel 4 posted footage of the family together with Austin speaking out what was going through his head.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">A 13-year-old boy in Australia has been hailed for saving his family from drowning after they were swept out to sea.<\/p>\n<p>Austin Appelbee was with his mother and two younger siblings when they got into difficulty.<\/p>\n<p>He managed to swim two and a half miles to shore to raise the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ted-cruz-jokes-about-pulling-the-fire-alarm-to-end-cory-bookers-filibuster\/\" title=\"Ted Cruz jokes about &#039;pulling the fire alarm&#039; to end Cory Booker&#039;s filibuster\">alarm&#038;hellip<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/wbwXZNvNDi\">pic.twitter.com\/wbwXZNvNDi<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Channel 4 News (@Channel4News) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Channel4News\/status\/2018679055277596937?\">February 3, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;[I was] trying to get the happiest things in my head, trying to make it through, not the bad things that would distract me.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;At this time, you know, the waves are massive and I have no life jacket on.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/GMA\/Family\/13-year-boy-speaks-after-swimming-miles-save\/story?id=129847231\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ABC News<\/a> reported Austin stated he was thinking about his friends, his family, but also anything else that would motivate him like his favorite Thomas the Tank Engine character.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s absolutely amazing,&rdquo; said his mother, Joanne.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Me and his dad are super proud.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>God was surely with Austin and his family in those critical moments. It must have been terrifying to have that much weight on his shoulders.<\/p>\n<p>It would be enough for a grown man to handle, but being just a teenager, it&rsquo;s almost unimaginable.<\/p>\n<p>God listened and brought his family home safe.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In an extraordinary rescue, a 13-year-old Australian boy, Austin Appelbee of Perth, saved his mother and two younger siblings after they were swept into Geographe Bay by strong winds and waves. While vacationing with his mother Joanne, his 13-year-old brother Beau, and 8-year-old sister Grace, they were out with paddleboards and a kayak when trouble struck. Austin, following his mother\u2019s instructions, swam back to shore for four hours, leaving his life jacket behind after about two hours to swim faster. He reached land exhausted and then sprinted two kilometers to a phone to call for help around 6:00 PM. Rescue helicopters and a volunteer marine rescue vessel located them around 8:30 PM and brought the family to safety. Authorities praised Austin\u2019s account of the ordeal, describing the rescue as \u201csuperhuman,\u201d and he attributed his survival to divine guidance, saying he prayed and tried to stay positive despite the massive waves and lack of a life jacket. His mother Joanne called him absolutely amazing and said they are incredibly proud, noting that many described the moment as miraculous<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2567409,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Michael-Featured-Image-638.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[73260,33363,73259,6176,73258],"class_list":["post-2567408","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-cold-water-swim","tag-endurance","tag-family-rescue-2","tag-heroism","tag-sea-rescue"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Michael-Featured-Image-638.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2567408","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2567408"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2567408\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2567412,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2567408\/revisions\/2567412"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2567409"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2567408"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2567408"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2567408"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}