Bad weather hampers search for fisherman swept off rocks in West Auckland

The fisherman was swept off rocks yesterday afternoon at Whatipu Beach, at the entrance to Auckland's Manukau Harbour. File photo / Brett Phibbs

Foul weather is preventing rescuers from renewing an aerial search for a fisherman who was swept off rocks at a West Auckland beach yesterday.

Emergency services were alerted around 1.45pm that the man had been swept away at Ninepin Rock, Whatipu Beach, at the entrance of the Manukau Harbour.

The police Eagle helicopter, Coast Guard and Land Search and Rescue all joined the operation but had no success yesterday.

Air and water searches paused overnight but the police LandSAR team had continued their search through the night, Coast Guard duty officer Nico Doodeman said.

A search from the air would be most effective in looking for the fisherman, Doodeman said. A fixed wing plane had to wait on standby but visibility was very poor.

"We're just waiting for this cloud cover to ease a bit and then we can reassess whether we can get them up."

Auckland has had rain on and off all morning and it's expected to get heavier later today.