The Setting

Late July, offshore from WA's isolated southern coastline. The open ocean swells are registering a bit over three metres with a period upwards of fifteen seconds. Though undoubtedly big, the swell was at the lower end of the size range for The Right which put it right in the sweet spot for The Left, which breaks at the other end of the wide bay.

A handful of tow crews are spread across both breaks, with Jesse Carter and Jake Osman concentrating on the latter.

Jesse is a Master 4 boat captain, and is one of the famed Carter clan from Kalbarri, including brother Mason who was tragically lost at sea in 2015, Liam and Cody who hold down the inside on the biggest days at Jakes, and apple of the family eye, Charlotte.

Professionally, Jake Osman has worked in many high risk environments and knows how to keep calm in a crisis, a trait that's held him in good stead during many big days at The Right. He's clocked eight seasons chasing that wave.

The two have surfed most of their lives, and they’ve also known each other most of their lives. They’re both up to date with all survival and rescue techniques.

Before we get into the more graphic parts of the story let's stop to admire this photo: Jesse Carter making it look easy with a quasi-soul arch under a top heavy section (Kim Feast)

The Beatdown

Jesse: “Jake was towing me. Everything was good but then I was on this wave and a step came up the face of the wave. I tried to pull up and go over the top of the step but it just grabbed my rail as I was trying to jump over the back of the wave.”

“It grabbed my rail and I was in a bad position so I knew it was going to be a gnarly one. I thought, "Oh no, I'm getting sucked over." It's the worst feeling.”

“Really, from that moment it was just on.”

"Everything was good but then..." (Sequence by Kim Feast)

"I thought, "Oh no, I'm getting sucked over." It's the worst feeling. Really, from that moment it was just on.”

Jake: “In front of The Left there's a lot of ledges that drain out to pretty much dry. Usually if you wipeout you get pulled the other way, but for whatever reason, that wipeout was pulling him into that zone. Right from the start it wasn’t good.”

Jesse: “The wipeout was a real heavy beatdown - felt like I was in a bloody martini shaker under there. It held me down for so long. I finally got to the surface and then just straight away I took the next bomb on the head. That one had me seeing stars pretty bad.”

Jake: “I watched what was happening and went around to grab him, but I missed him.”

Jesse: “Jake's come in and he's come in a little bit wide. I was a bit out of it too. Couldn’t operate, couldn’t get to him. I was half knocked-out, not really knowing what was happening.”

Jake: “As I got the ski out he copped a couple more on the head. He was getting dragged closer into where all those ledges are.”

Jesse: “Jake’s gone and I’m alone again taking more on the head. Now I was getting sucked into that really hectic area, which I've talked to Kerby [Brown] about before. Kerby's been sucked into that same area. It's just a really gnarly spot, mate. It's just hectic.”

The Rescue

Jake: “Initially I was like, "Okay, there's nothing I can do now. He's in that zone. If I go in there on my ski there's no getting out of there.”

“Then he looked at me…he was a few metres from getting sucked into a ledge and it looked like he was about to drown. I've been doing this for eight years, surfing these sort of waves, and I'd never seen the face I saw looking back at me. At that moment I felt like I was about to watch my mate die.”

Jesse: “I still couldn’t put two and two together.”

Jake: “So I went in there. I drove the ski directly at him. I missed him on the first attempt earlier and couldn’t afford to miss him again. It felt like I was pretty much on dry reef when he grabbed the sled. I’m yelling at him, and he's out of it, but I finally got him on the sled.”

Jesse: “Jake's come in again and yelled at me to get on, so I jumped on the back of the sled. I thought we were home free.”

Jake: “So I’ve got him on the sled, but the ski starts cavitating - it’s all whitewash and air in there.”

“I looked behind me and we’re about to get mowed down by a wall of whitewash right in front of these rocks. Amazingly, the ski kicked in and we fucking got going even though we’re still right in the danger zone. I figured that I’ve got to get Jesse away from the ledges; get him as far away as I can. We’re still in the shit but at least he's got more of a fighting chance away from the ledges."

“We got as far as I thought we were going to get, then I weighed up whether to dry dock us into the rocks or turn into the whitewater. I committed to trying to punch it through the whitewater.”

Jesse: “I wasn’t really ready for it. It felt like someone had just punched me in the head as hard as they possibly could.”

Jake: “The ski flipped and I realised I was about to get sandwiched between the rocks and the jet ski. I didn't know how this was going to unfold. I felt a lot of grief, a lot of sadness in that moment.”

Jesse: “I surfaced after that wave. Looked up and the ski was upside down. I've taken another one on the head and I couldn’t see Jake, but I could see the rocks. I've gone, "Fuck, this is my only chance." 

“And so I just swam for the rocks as fast as I could, leapt up on the rocks, climbed up this bloody rock face.”

Jake: “I look and see Jesse running up a rock. I yelled at him to jump as I knew waves would smash up against those rocks because they were wet.”

Jesse: “I knew I wasn’t really safe, but just as I turned round this fucken massive whitewater just blew me off the rock face into this big gully. When I landed, I snapped my fucken ankle.”

Jake: “I was being dragged over rocks and into a channel. I climbed up the rocks which were attached to land. I could hear Jesse yelling out to me so I looked to see him back in the water. I went back down the rock to the edge and grabbed him and pulled him out of the ocean and onto the rock.”

Jesse: “The waves just would not stop. Somewhere in there I remember commando-crawling. Then Jake was there and he got me on a rock.”

Jake:  “Once we were in a safe position we rested and assessed the situation, his injuries and our options.”

Jesse: “We just sat there for probably five or ten minutes - I don't know how long it was - but then Wisey [Matt Wiseman] came, and Wisey and Jake got me up to higher land, and then that's when the walk happened.”

The Evacuation

Jake: “Matt Wiseman was the first on the scene. He swam through the current and waves, then over rocks to reach us. The two of us got Jesse off the rocks and onto the land. Then his tow partner Reilly Smith came and we tried crutching him, but the difference in height between us was too much. “

“I picked up Jesse and started walking him in the direction of the carpark. We got to the top of the cliff and I heard the boys yelling and waving from the ocean. I saw Matt swimming in again with an inflatable sled, so I put Jesse down and waited for Matt.”

“Jesse’s ankle was clearly snapped and you could see the bones under his booties  and a tear in his wetsuit where his leg was sliced. When Matt reached us we put Jesse on the sled, Zac Haynes arrived, and so the three of us lifted Jesse and started the walk.”

“Andrew Semark and Rex Minx arrived. Anj was straight on the phone organising an ambulance to meet us at the carpark. Rex was running ahead and mapping out the best path for us around the cliffs and through the bush. We all carried him and gave each other short breaks.”

Bare feet, sharp rocks, and a makeshift rescue platform, the tow teams cart Jesse over the isolated headlands

“Once we got around the cliffs and bush, Shanan [Worrall] and Davey [Bowden] arrived. The seven of us carried Jesse over the rocks, down the cliff, into the water and over waves.”

“We then got Jesse as far as we could along the beach. Jake Harman arrived with a first aid kit so the boys splinted his leg, wrapped him in a blanket and strapped him onto a sled attached to a ski. Shanan and myself held onto Jesse while Zac drove the ski around the rocks to the beach on the other side.”

“We got knocked off the ski by a wave close to shore. Zac and Shanan jumped back on the ski with Jesse and I swam to shore. The paramedics were on the beach and it was almost dark. A few of us had to get the remaining skis back to the boat ramp, roughly half an hour drive away, while the paramedics and the remaining boys carried Jesse along the beach to the carpark.”

Busted ankle but double shakas. Said Jesse: "At that point I was just happy to be alive.”

“The whole ordeal would’ve taken two or three hours and I was blown away by how Jesse handled it. He wasn’t whinging or complaining, he was trying to crack jokes, even when we were bumping his leg.”

Jesse: “I’ve got no idea how long it took to get me back - two or three hours? The adrenalin had worn off and I was definitely feeling it, but I was surrounded by mates. At that point I was just happy to be alive.”

The Aftermath

Jake: “There’s a lot to process and I’m not sure if I’ve done that yet.”

Jesse: “It’s not like we can look back and see something we did wrong. It was a fucking hectic situation, mate. The waves wouldn't stop - they just wouldn't stop. Only me and Jake know how gnarly that situation got, and he did absolutely everything right to give me a chance.”

“If you want to surf these sort of waves then these things will eventually happen. I got smoked, but I was lucky to have a partner that was prepared to put it all on the line to rescue me.”

Jake:  “All the boys who helped have been chatting about it. I think my biggest takeaway from it is knowing that when the shit hits the fan, there are some very capable people prepared to help.”

Jesse: ‘It’s strange, but things like this bring out the best in people. It’s bonded me with so many people. Everybody's been so great. They've all messaged me while I've been in hospital. Such a fucking beautiful bunch of crew.”

The Diagnosis

Jesse: “I broke the lateral and posterior malleolus. Dislocated the ankle bone and broke the bottom of the tibia and the fibula.”

“I’m in a moon boot for two months and need two more months of rehab. I’m out of the water for four months.”

Last Words

Jesse: “If you want to surf big waves then you better train for the worst case scenario. You can't stop and hit the pause button cos you're versing Mother Nature, mate."

"Do the survival and rescue drills, learn them by heart, and keep them up to date.”