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Mother says asking 13-year-old son to swim four hours to save family ‘one of the hardest decisions’ ever made

The Guardian - World NewsCenter-LeftEN 4 min read 100% complete by Ima CaldwellFebruary 4, 2026 at 03:17 AM
Mother says asking 13-year-old son to swim four hours to save family ‘one of the hardest decisions’ ever made
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AI Summary

medium article 4 min

While vacationing in Quindalup, Australia, Joanne Appelbee and her three children were swept offshore from Geographe Bay when strong winds pushed their paddleboards and kayak out to sea. Facing a dire situation, Appelbee made the difficult decision to send her 13-year-old son, Austin, to swim for help. Austin swam approximately 4km to shore and then ran 2km to reach a phone and call emergency services around 6 pm. Exhausted, he was taken to the hospital. Meanwhile, Appelbee and her younger children, Beau, 12, and Grace, 8, drifted further out to sea as night fell, struggling to stay afloat. Austin's call prompted a rescue effort to find his mother and siblings.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context
ABC 40% BBC 40% Perth 60% Geographe Bay 70% Quindalup 70% Beau Appelbee ×270% Grace Appelbee ×270% Joanne Appelbee ×690% Austin Appelbee ×890%

Keywords

sea rescue 90% family survival 80% difficult decision 70% strong winds 60% emergency services 50% paddleboards 50% exhaustion 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Neutral
Score: 0.10

Source Transparency

Source
The Guardian - World News
Political Lean
Center-Left (-0.40)
Far LeftCenterFar Right
Classification Confidence
90%
Geographic Perspective
Quindalup

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

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sea rescuefamily survivaldifficult decisionstrong windsemergency servicespaddleboardsexhaustion
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