A SEARCH will resume on Monday for an Eleebana man who was washed off rocks while fishing near Catherine Hill Bay on Sunday morning.
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Distraught family and friends kept a vigil in a car park near Timber Beach and Snapper Point as news of the man's disappearance spread.
Acting Inspector Stephen Wade from Tuggerah Lakes Police said the 62-year-old had been fishing on rocks with his son-in-law when he lost his balance at about 10.30am.
"His son-in-law has caught a fish and he [the missing man] has gone to help him pick it up and fallen into the water. He hasn't been seen since," Acting Inspector Wade said.
The man was wearing a life jacket and had a limited swimming ability.
The swell was about a metre at the time.
The Westpac Rescue Helicopter and the PolAir Helicopter did several passes of the notorious stretch of coastline without success during the afternoon.
Lifesavers and police divers searched around the rock platforms and swam into a cave in an attempt to locate the man.
The search was suspended as the light faded at 5pm.
"Everyone is hoping for the best but we have done all we can today. We will be back at first light tomorrow," Acting Inspector Wade said.
The picturesque corner of the Munmorah State Conservation Area has a tragic history, with 35 major emergency callouts, including nine drownings, occurring in the area in the past decade.
Five people narrowly escaped with their lives last December after they became trapped in a cave at Snapper Point.
The swimmers had to be pulled from the water in the dangerous rescue - the second time in a week a mission had been launched to retrieve swimmers from the cave.
Rescues in the area are made more difficult due to heavy swells and a lack of mobile phone and two-way radio reception.
"If you're not a good swimmer and experienced and know the area, you're crazy going in there," Surf Life Saving Central Coast chairman Stuart Harvey said.