There are calls for a popular NSW tourist destination to be closed following multiple deaths at the site in recent years, including a tourist missing since Monday who is presumed dead.

Key points: The search for a 22-year-old man washed off the rocks on Monday has been called off

The search for a 22-year-old man washed off the rocks on Monday has been called off The incident occurred at the peak of high tide with the NPWS website listing the wave risk as 'extreme'

The incident occurred at the peak of high tide with the NPWS website listing the wave risk as 'extreme' The most recent drowning takes the death toll along coastal areas in the Royal National Park to nine since 2016

Emergency services have called off the search for a 22-year-old international student who was washed from rocks at the Figure Eight Pools in the Royal National Park, south of Sydney, on Monday.

The Nepalese national had been visiting the popular location with a group of friends when he was swept off the platform at high tide and did not resurface.

A second man disappeared under water but was able to climb to safety with only minor injuries.

"Obviously it's sad, but it's just frustrating how many drownings keep happening," said water safety advocate Professor Rob Brander.

"This one in particular was totally avoidable and unnecessary."

Professor Brander is now calling for the area to be closed permanently to prevent further deaths.

"It's so dangerous, and I think closing areas and maybe limiting access might be what you have to do in some places," Professor Brander said.

"It's not just the Figure Eight Pools, it's the sea cliff bridge where you've got people scrambling up behind the bridge to take pictures and they are falling off the cliff."

Surf Life Saving crews were searching for the man swept from rocks at the Figure Eight Pools since Monday. ( Supplied: Kane Hughes/NSW Surf Life Saving )

'Ignorant' visitors not heeding warnings

New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) has a warning system on its website which predicts wave conditions in the area and warns visitors when it is too hazardous to visit the pools.

This weeks' incident occurred at the peak of a high tide and the forecast wave risk at the location was listed as 'extreme'.

Professor Brander said the online resource is a strong tool but does not go far enough.

"It's a brilliant resource, but I just wonder how many people are actually using that resource to time their visit. I suspect not many," he said.

"They [tourists] have no idea that you really can only visit a couple hours either side of low tide and never when there's large waves.

"The ignorance level is probably 100 per cent for a lot of those visitors."

Surf Life Saving NSW CEO Steven Pearce has reiterated the importance of checking conditions before entering potentially dangerous areas.

"We continue to urge the public to stop, look and think before walking on rock platforms, especially when conditions are as treacherous as they are at the moment," he said.

"It's not only our beaches that are dangerous in these situations, rock platforms pose a significant and unpredictable threat."

Social media blamed for rising number of rescues

According to statistics captured by Surf Life Saving New South Wales, the most recent drowning at the iconic location takes the death toll along coastal areas in the Royal National Park to nine since 2016.

This image from Instagram shows a wave hitting the rock shelf at Figure Eight Pools. This wave saw three people treated for minor injuries. ( Instagram: jeanayyy )

The data also reveals there have been 343 rescues performed off coastal locations within the park by Surf Life Savers and life guards since 2014.

The fatalities occurred at several locations inside the park that are increasingly popular on social media including the Figure Eight Pools, the Wattamolla picnic area and Cape Solander.

"We're reaching a tipping point and it's all driven by social media," Professor Brander said.

"I don't do Instagram, I'm not driven by getting these pictures, I'm not trying to tick these bucket lists off.

"We're reaching the threshold of how we manage looking after people and the environment because there are more and more people going to beaches that are unpatrolled. They shouldn't be there or at dangerous locations."

In a statement, a NPWS spokesperson said the department is deeply concerned about the incident at the Figure Eight Pools this week.

"NPWS has worked tirelessly with other emergency services to improve visitor safety and warn visitors of the inherent dangers of visiting a rock platform which is adjacent to the open ocean and is frequently hit by large waves," the spokesperson said.

"The rock platform is completely submerged during high tide and large swells and large wave sets frequently break across the entire platform, even during low tide."

While the area is not managed by the NPWS is it accessed through the Royal National Park.

The spokesperson said restricting access to the dangerous rock platform could be more dangerous.

"It could potentially cause more accidents as people intent on visiting the site may venture off designated pathways to reach the pools, making a visit even more hazardous," the spokesperson said.