Two 17-year-old boys entered the water at about 6.00pm on Tuesday and became separated in the large swell.
One of the boys returned to shore but the other was heard calling for help after losing his board and being swept out to sea.
The Hunter's Westpac Rescue Helicopter found him about 500 metres from shore and winched him on board - he'd been in the water for about 45 minutes.
The boy was treated for exhaustion at the beach carpark before being taken to the John Hunter Hospital as a precaution.
“Had it not been for the swift response of emergency services, we could have had an extremely tragic event here today,” said Inspector Cheryl Day from Lake Macquarie Police District.
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| The Westpac Rescue Helicopter winched the boy on board and flew him back to the Redhead Beach carpark |
