Tragedy on the beach

A Sunday fishing trip turned to tragedy for two men likely swept from the rocks into the sea while angling off a perilous spot at the base of the Coromandel Peninsula.

Now two wives are left behind in Hamilton, struggling to deal with the loss of at least one of the men whose body washed ashore at Homunga Bay on Sunday. He was Yingbo Xu, 28 years old, from Hamilton.

The partner of the other missing man, 36, is anxiously awaiting news at home, with her newborn baby and young child.

Both men, originally from China and now living in Hamilton, had headed out for a day’s fishing on the rocks of the isolated bay, north of Waihi Beach, sometime Sunday morning.

They took with them a backpack of personal items and their fishing gear, parking at the top of the rugged cliff that looks out across the Bay of Plenty coastline. After navigating the 45-minute trek down the farm track, past cattle grazing on the hillside and through the shrub, they reached the small sandy inlet of Homunga Bay.

At the southern end of the beach is a rocky outpost – a popular spot for fishermen in search of everything from snapper and kahawai to gurnard and trevally.

But it’s also a treacherous spot, Sergeant Phil Bell of Waikato police search and rescue said. Past incidents have seen a life ring installed on the rocks.

‘‘Where they were fishing has been a problem spot before.

‘‘It’s a very rugged part of the coast and when you have the wind and the swell coming in from the east, it’s very rough on those rocks and the whole coastline takes a real beating.’’ Both men were from China and described by police as beginner fishermen.

The missing man only very recently immigrated to New Zealand with his wife, young child and baby, a little over a month old.

He was learning to fish and had been going out with a friend, Bell said.

Although it was unconfirmed, police believed the pair were swept off the rocks into the sea, likely at the same time.

‘‘If they had been washed off separately you would expect the life buoy to be deployed but it’s still in place,’’ Bell said.

‘‘Weather conditions are such that you can get those unpredictable waves coming through.’’ A father and son out fishing discovered the 28-year-old’s body floating in the waves near the middle of the beach on Sunday. They notified police around 2.30pm. The man had been formally identified and police had spoken with his wife.

‘‘They are all upset,’’ Bell said. Items belonging to the pair, including a shoe, clothing and backpack containing personal items, were found abandoned on the rocks at the southern end of the bay.

Neither of the men were wearing lifejackets, Bell said.

Speaking from the scene yesterday , Waikato police Search and Rescue Constable Brian Connors said two land-based teams were scouring the area – one north and one south of Homunga Bay.

‘‘They’re checking all the beaches, and rocks and high points right around the cliff faces looking for the missing person.

‘‘Surf life saving have three IRBs [inflatable rescue boats] operating just off the coast.’’ He understood the pair were fishing on the point to the south end of the small sandy bay. Searchers had recovered unrelated fishing debris, but no sign of the missing man.