Four missing teens found safe and well in Port Phillip Bay ‘miracle’
Four teenagers have been found alive in what police have hailed a “Christmas miracle” after going missing in waters off Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula.
Two 18-year-old men and two women aged 18 and 19 were found across the bay on Swan Island off the Bellarine Peninsula about 9am on Tuesday.
They were taken to Geelong Hospital in stable conditions with no obvious injuries, Ambulance Victoria said.
The group were using two inflatable paddle boards off Rosebud Beach on Monday – about 30km away from where they were found.
They were swept by the tide, wind and current from Rosebud, straight across Port Phillip Bay to the Queenscliff area, Victoria Police Acting Superintendent Terence Rowlands said.
The group were found on a Swan Island beach, with island security and military personnel ultimately alerting police to their discovery.
“You can see the smile on my face – (it’s) absolutely sensational that they’ve been found safe and well,” Rowlands told reporters.
“Luck has had a lot to do with it.”
The teenagers were cold but very thankful to be on dry land when they were found.
“All too often, these things usually end in tragedy,” Acting Inspector Ian Pregnell said told Melbourne radio station 3AW.
“This is, one might say, a Christmas miracle.”
It was an emotional time when families were told the teenagers’ were found, he said.
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Father Jack Shi told Nine News the parents were relieved their kids were safe.
“We’re very, very happy about that. It’s huge, huge relief. We were very desperate,” he said.
Swan Island is a military training base on one side and the Queenscliff Golf Club is on the other.
The group’s belongings including phones and IDs were found on the beach by a passerby at about 8pm on Monday, triggering the search.
