WA teenager Austin Appelbee awarded bravery medal for swim rescue

A Perth teenager who swam four kilometres in rough ocean conditions to save his family after they were swept out to sea has been awarded a prestigious bravery medal.

Austin Appelbee made international headlines in February when he made a superhuman swim to shore to raise the alarm after he and his family were pushed offshore while paddleboarding and kayaking in Quindalup, 250 kilometres south of Perth.

The teenager was awarded the Clarke Gold Medal for bravery by the Royal Humane Society of Australasia (RHSA), an Australian charity that has recognised people who risk their lives to save others since 1874.

Austin, who was aged 13 at the time was recognised for his "outstanding bravery and enduring commitment to the preservation of life".

Austin left his mother and two siblings behind in the ocean, swimming through dangerous open waters for four hours to reach shore, then ran two kilometres to reach a phone to call for help.

"Both his heroic actions to swim and the run to get help were instrumental in alerting emergency services and enabling the successful rescue of his mother, sister and brother,"

the RHSA said.

His efforts kickstarted a mission which eventually found and rescued his family, who by that time had drifted about 14 kilometres offshore and spent 10 hours at sea.

The Perth schoolboy's medal was one of eight bravery awards presented at WA Government House this morning.

Austin's mother Joanne Appelbee was awarded a Certificate of Merit for making "the difficult and courageous decision" to send her son toward shore.

"Her judgement, composure and maternal leadership were integral to a successful rescue outcome," the RHSA said.

Medal for house fire rescue

Carl Pilkington, an off-duty WA Police officer and volunteer firefighter, was awarded the Clarke Gold Medal for saving an older woman from a house fire in Marble Bar in the Pilbara in October, 2023.

"Without hesitation, Mr Pilkington entered the burning, smoke-filled home,"

the RHSA said.

Mr Pilkington worked alone for an extended time, saving the woman and fighting the fire, in extreme temperatures and with minimal resources.

"His bravery, composure and determination in circumstances of grave personal danger directly saved a life," the society said.

Truck driver Robert Johnson was awarded a bronze medal for saving two people after a car crash near Brunswick in 2022.

"Mr Johnson immediately stopped, retrieved a fire extinguisher from his truck, and ran alone toward the burning vehicle to suppress the flames," the society said.

The society also awarded bronze medals to Ashley Tomlinson and David Whitaker, who together restrained and disarmed a person who was stealing jewellery from a Rockingham store in 2023, armed with a knife and a tomahawk axe.

Certificates of Merit were awarded to Mark Coppendale for keeping a truck driver alive after a highway crash until emergency services arrived at the scene, and WA Police Senior Constable Alex Mears, who rescued a woman from the Swan River as she was experiencing a mental health emergency.