Devastation as father and renowned fisher remains missing off east coast

A community is devastated as a father and renowned fisherman remains missing in the waters on Australia's east coast.

Ashley Haigh, 44, was last seen setting out from The Spit on the Gold Coast just after 6.30am on Thursday and was reported missing when his black half-cabin boat failed to return about 7pm that same day.

His boat was found unmanned near Burleigh about seven hours later.

READ MORE: Tropical cyclone to break eight-year record when it makes landfall as category 3 storm

Andrew Dunbar has been friends with Haigh for 15 years and spoke with him the night before he went missing.

"Our hope is that we find Ash," he said. 

"If you were going to be out at sea in the water, the conditions over the last two days have probably been the best you could probably expect." 

Dunbar described Haigh as the backbone of the local fishing community. 

"He's a very experienced fisherman, been fishing for a long time," he said.

Stuart Grice from Doug Burt's Tackle World said Haigh was well-known in the fishing community.

READ MORE: Sydney shark attack victim 'healing' as he comes off life support

"Ash is a local friend of the fishing community, president of the local Gold Coast game fish club. Well-renowned fisherman, skipper, father, husband," he said. 

9News understands Haigh was on a mission to reel in a marlin, which can be a challenge for even experienced anglers. 

He was also known to pack multiple fishing rods but authorities only found one on board.

Police also found one life jacket missing, but were unable to confirm whether he had been wearing one at the time. 

Due to the current, search crews are focusing their efforts on the waters more than 170km away in northern NSW.

Today, they expanded their search area further south from Byron Bay to Evans Head.

Both NSW and Queensland authorities have been out searching for Haigh, with five marine vessels and one aircraft scouring the waters.

Crews are asking anyone with information about Haigh's location or welfare to come forward. 

"If anyone is out there and they do see anything at all, retrieve it and give it to one of our rescue vessels," Marine Rescue NSW's John Murray said. 

NEVER MISS A STORY: Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.

• Download the 9NEWS App here via Apple and Google Play
• Make 9News your preferred source on Google by ticking this box here
• Sign up to our breaking newsletter here