An ocean search has failed to find any trace of a 14-year-old boy feared drowned, almost 48 hours after he went missing from a Sydney beach.
The search for Tui Gallaher, who went missing after getting in trouble with his cousin at Maroubra beach on Tuesday night, is now considered to be a recovery operation.
His mother has described the immense heartache she felt when told the teen was missing, the Daily Telegraph reports.
"You don't know you can run out of tears until something like this happens," Sandra Tamano told the newspaper.
"I think everyone sees their kids as special but Tui was one of a kind. He was an angel."
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
The teen's cousin was pulled form the surf by a passerby shortly before Tui vanished around 8.30pm.
Police say the man who rescued the cousin then tried to look for Tui but could not find him.
Tui's aunt has set up a fundraising page for his family.
"No answers yet but we are still hanging on to hope that we may find Tui," she said on the page earlier on Thursday.
Tui's mother reportedly collapsed in the sand during the search on Wednesday.
The scaled back search is expected to resume on Friday morning.
