Emergency services were called to Punch Bowl Road in San Remo around 8.30am on Good Friday morning, after three people were washed off the rocks.

One woman managed to swim back to shore, and rescuers, including Police Air Wing managed to locate another woman in the water.

She was brought back to shore but could not be revived.

Police said the search for the man continues.

High risk

The Punchbowl rocks are considered one of the most dangerous spots for recreational rock fishing in the state.

In early 2022, the area was part of a State Government trial at high risk locations for recreational rock fishing, requiring lifejackets to be worn.

This followed the death of a woman on New Year’s Eve, who went missing while fishing with family near the George Bass Coastal Walk and Punchbowl Road.

At the start of 2020, a fisherman was killed when he was washed off the rocks at Punchbowl, the third such death in four months.

Since 2000 there have been six deaths of anglers at Punchbowl, which represents a third of all rock fishing deaths in Victoria in the last two decades.

It is now law to wear a lifejacket when rock fishing in designated high-risk areas.

In the local area, this includes Cowries Rock Platform, Kitty Miller Bay and all the rock platforms between Bore Bay and Kilcunda, including Punchbowl.