Child swept out to sea at Mount Maunganui

 

A 5-year-old boy is missing after a woman and three young children playing on the Mount Maunganui shoreline were hit by a large wave.

A search and rescue operation is underway in an area known as Shelly Beach near the Base Track at Mount Maunganui after the alarm was raised at 11.50am.

The three children were swept out to sea when they were hit by the wave.

The woman managed to rescue two of the children, both girls, but the boy was swept out.

A Bay of Plenty Times reporter at the scene said the boy's distraught mother had arrived at the Mount Maunganui Surf Lifesaving Club.

She was comforted by two other women, believed to be family members, as she said her son did not know how to swim.

The two girls were taken to hospital for observation.

The woman suffered minor cuts.

A helicopter circled over IRBs searching for the boy and police officers were standing on rocks looking for any sign of him.

An off-duty police officer in the area saw the woman as she made her way out of the water and called for help.

The sea is extremely rough, with three- to four-metre swells.

Police are asking the public to stay clear of the area.

It was the second incident police had responded to at Mount Maunganui beach this morning.

About 11am a person was seen caught in a rip, but managed to paddle out of it after a short while.

 

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