An urgent search is underway for a missing diver off the coast of Gascoyne, Western Australia.

The 30-year-old man was last seen on Tuesday afternoon near Red Bluff at Quobba Station, 970km north of Perth.

It is believed the man failed to surface while he was fishing and diving with two friends about 800 metres from shore.

Two of the man’s friends alerted the emergency services.

Police said specialist diving teams were coordinating the search for the missing man.

Officers and volunteers from Carnarvon, 125km to the south, are also helping in the search. A drone is helping to find the diver.