#sea-rescue

#sea-rescue

A 13-year-old boy has saved his mother and two younger siblings by swimming for four hours in fading light and rough conditions, after they were swept out to sea in south-west Western Australia. The family were holidaying in Quindalup, 200km south of Perth, when strong winds pushed their inflatable paddleboards and kayak offshore from Geographe Bay on Friday afternoon. The boy attempted to kayak back to shore to get help, but the vessel took on water, forcing him to swim 4km back to shore, where he successfully raised the alarm.

A coastguard spokesperson told the AFP news agency that the rescued asylum seekers were from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan and the occupied Palestinian territory. They were taken to the Cretan city of Rethymno, the spokesperson said, and after undergoing health checks, their asylum claims will be processed. In a separate incident on Thursday, the European Union's border agency Frontex rescued 65 men and five women seeking refuge from two boats in distress off Gavdos, the Greek coastguard added.

Rough seas that flipped a fishing boat Saturday morning kept hammering the five people tossed into Tomales Bay, draining their strength as they clung to life in the frigid water. One of them a 6-year-old girl was trapped beneath the overturned vessel. Her father dove under, reaching blindly in water where he couldn't know what hazards fishing gear, lines or ropes might be lurking.