South Taranaki water incident: Body of a man found near Waiinu Beach

The body was found near Waiinu Beach in South Taranaki. Photo / Bevan Conley

The body of a man has been found near Waiinu Beach where a fisherman went missing off the rocks.

While formal identification is yet to take place, police believe the body found on Tuesday morning is likely to be that of the missing man.

"He was found just east of the beach by one of the family members," Wanganui Surf Lifeguard Service chairman James Newell said.

"The dive squad then went in and recovered the body and covered it up."

Newell said the operation had been a community effort.

"The whole community were searching the beach every day. They knew the beach really well, which freed up the police's time."

Police were initially called at around 11.15 am on Saturday to search for him, with a helicopter, coastguard, surf lifesavers and police search and rescue all working to locate the man.

The search has been ongoing since then.

Newell said they had two boats searching the coastline over the weekend and the same again on Monday.

He said there was large public involvement in the operation.

South Taranaki district councillor Brian Rook said on Saturday the missing man was about 30 and from South Taranaki.

Police thanked everyone who assisted with the search efforts over the weekend.

The death will be referred to the Coroner.