Man drowns at Wooli Beach, north of Coffs Harbour, after trying to help girls

A man from Grafton aged in his late 50s has drowned after attempting to save two girls in the water at a beach north of Coffs Harbour.

Emergency services were called to Wooli Beach at about 1.15pm on Monday, following reports a man was pulled from the water and was unresponsive.

The girls were among a group of five people who were swimming together when a flash rip north of the flags caused them to experience difficulties in the water. 

It is understood the man, who was sitting on the beach with his nephew, saw the girls quickly tiring against the strong current and being carried away from shore. He rushed into the water in an attempt to come to their aid. 

Two lifeguards from the Australian Lifeguard Service assisted and the children were pulled to safety.

The lifeguards then saw that the man was unconscious and swam back to pull him to shore, where CPR was performed and a defibrillator used. 

Paramedics arrived and attempted to treat the man for 50 minutes. However, he was unable to be revived and died at the scene.

Police from Coffs-Clarence Local Area Command will prepare a brief for the Coroner.

Surf Life Saving NSW spokesperson Liam Howitt said the rip was "a really sudden event" and that the lifeguards "reacted very professionally in what was a really distressing situation".

The children were seen panicking about 30 metres north of the flagged area. "This is why we encourage people to swim between the flags," Mr Howitt said.

He added that the initial reaction to a rip, which occurs suddenly, is usually panic, with many people attempting to swim towards the shore. He advises swimmers caught in a rip to swim parallel to the shore.

This was the second coastal drowning in two days, bringing the count to 10 since July 1. 

A man drowned at Wattamolla lagoon in the Royal National Park on Sunday evening, prompting firefighters, police, paramedics, doctors and a helicopter to arrive at the scene.