Searches at first light for missing students and instructor

LATEST: The search for three people who are missing after being swept into rough seas off New Plymouth will resume tomorrow, police say.

Acting area commander Inspector Frank Grant said 11 Year 13 students from Spotswood College were with two Taranaki Outdoor Pursuit and Education Centre instructors  on a rock climbing exercise at Paritutu Rock when three students fell into the water.

"One of the instructors entered the water to assist the students. One of the students managed to cling onto a rock and was winched to safety by the Taranaki Community Rescue Helicopter, but the remaining two students and the instructor have not resurfaced," he said.

Grant said the two students were both 17-year-old boys. One was from New Plymouth and the other was  Brazilian.