Santo Domingo.– A Vancouver man has disappeared off  the coast of the Dominican Republic while trying to save a swimmer caught in a powerful current, friends say.

Hady Quan, 32, was swept out to sea on Friday while trying to save someone from drowning near a beach resort in the eastern region of Punta Cana, friends told CBC News. He was on holiday with his girlfriend in the Caribbean country.

Quan's friends said the hotel where he was staying had no lifeguards or rescue boats. A brief helicopter search was organized, but rescue crews found no trace of the missing man, they said.

A Vancouver newspaper reported that the man originally in distress was recovered by rescuers, but it's uncertain whether the man survived. Friends of Quan were quoted in the Vancouver Sun as saying he later died, but officials have not confirmed that.

A spokesperson with Canada's Foreign Affairs Department confirmed to CBC News that a Canadian citizen was missing off the Dominican Republic, but would not verify any details.

Officials said they are in contact with local authorities and that no further information is available at this time.