A 29-year-old man‚ who is understood to be a member of the SA Police Services Academy at Oudtshoorn in the Western Cape‚ is missing after he was apparently swept off rocks by waves at the Oubaai Golf Resort near Herolds Bay on Saturday.

The National Sea Rescue Institute’s Wilderness station commander‚ Robert van Heldsingen‚ said his duty crew had received a call for assistance at around 12.17pm from Oudtshoorn Police Academy members reporting one of their members missing in the sea.

But despite an extensive sea‚ air and shoreline search for conducted for the missing man – believed to be from Gauteng – no sign was found of the man.

“It is believed that a group of men were on rocks on the shoreline below the Oubaai Golf Resort when the man was swept off rocks by a wave.

“According to reports a friend went into the surf to try to rescue him and the friend managed to get safely back to the shore after losing sight of the victim‚” Van Heldsingen said.

He added that police dive units were continuing with the search.

Van Heldsingen cautioned beachgoers‚ anglers and people boating in the area about rough sea conditions.

“A Spring Tide peaks on the New Moon today on the 1st of October and the effects of this Spring Tide on the coastline will last for the next few days.

“Spring Tide happens twice every month‚ at Full Moon and at New Moon‚ and lasts for a few days over each full moon and each new moon and peaking on the day of the full moon and the new moon.

“Spring Tides bring a higher than normal high tide and a lower than normal low tide and stronger than normal rip currents.

“It is suspected that the New Moon Spring Tide and large sea swells in the area of the Southern Cape Coastline today may have contributed to the incident happening today‚” Van Heldersingen said.