""We kept singing, we sang about Moana. We were looking for dolphins to see if that could help us back in. And when it got dark, that's when it really hit home, we might not make it," she told RTÉ."
""One of the hardest decisions I ever had to make was to say to Austin, 'Try and get to shore and get some help. This could get really serious, really quickly,'" she told ABC."
""The waves are massive and I have no life jacket on. I just kept thinking, 'Just keep swimming, just keep swimming,'" he said. "Then, I finally made it to shore and I hit the bottom of the beach and I just collapsed.""
Joanne Appelbee and her three children were swept kilometres out to sea after rough ocean and wind conditions dragged their kayaks and paddle boards. The family drifted as waves grew higher and conditions deteriorated, with no food or drinkable water. They repeatedly fell into the water and clung to their craft while singing and searching for dolphins. As night fell Appelbee sent her eldest, Austin, to seek help; he abandoned a leaking inflatable, removed his life jacket, and swam about 4km to shore. A search helicopter found Appelbee and the two younger children about 14km from Quindalup after up to ten hours in the water.
Read at Irish Independent
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