A Colombian tourist was found dead on Monday in Bali following hours of searching to locate the man who went missing after being swept away by strong waves off Seminyak Beach.

Lucas Barrales was swimming off the island’s popular beach in Badung regency on Sunday when a strong current suddenly swept him out to sea. He never returned to the beach. 

“The victim was found dead at 10:30 a.m. local time. His dead body was washed ashore on the coast,” Bali Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) head Hari Adi Purnomo said on Monday.

Basarnas Bali received a report about the missing Barrales at nearly 1 p.m. local time on Sunday, after which the office immediately dispatched two rescue teams to conduct a search in cooperation with the Badung lifeguard team, Hari said.

The search and rescue efforts, which started at 1:45 p.m. local time, involved the deployment of officers riding on two jet skis and one rubber boat with eight personnel onboard to focus on the sea.

"Our team also took off from I Gusti Ngurah Rai airport on a Bell 429 helicopter belonging to the Bali water police," said Basarnas Bali operations head Ida Bagus Surya Wirawan.

The personnel initially could not find any sign of the missing tourist on Sunday. The operation continued on Monday, with the Basarnas deploying two more rubber boats.