Search continues for man feared drowned after rescue attempt at Wybung Head on NSW Central Coast (ABC)

The search continues for a 20-year-old man who jumped into the sea off the New South Wales Central Coast to try to save a friend from drowning.

The Chinese national was fishing with friends off rocks at Wybung Head on Friday night when his friend was swept into the water by a wave about 6:30pm.

The missing student and the woman's 25-year-old partner, Hui-Qing Hua, jumped into the water to rescue her but neither of them surfaced. The woman returned to the rocks safely on a wave.

Mr Hui-Qing's body was recovered by search crews about 9:00am Saturday.

The woman had the horrific task of identifying her partner's body.

More than 100 people were involved in the search, which included boats and helicopters.

Inspector Chris Welfare said the search was dangerous work because there were underwater caves in the area.

"It's fairly severe sort of currents around that particular area, a lot of underwater caves and things like that," Inspector Welfare said.

"Conducting these sorts of searches in the past, we've had people whom we've never found, because of the subterranean caves and they just disappear.

"It's very difficult for divers to go into that particular area. You've got to be very careful as well, otherwise the rescuers might have to be rescued."

Inspector Welfare said it was an awful tragedy and police were in contact with both families in China.

The parents of both men were on their way to Sydney.

Local fishermen said the area was treacherous and several people had been rescued previously.

"At that actual location, the people who go rock fishing aren't prepared for the danger of the sport," fisherman Peter Trenear said.

"For the inexperienced, it can be life-threatening."

In a separate incident, the body of a 19-year-old Norwegian man was pulled from the Hawkesbury River at Windsor last night.

He had been with friends yesterday afternoon using a rope swing to jump into the river when he disappeared.

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