A 21-year-old Washington state man died Saturday at a dangerous ocean attraction on East Oahu that has been the site of three deaths over the past two years.

The incident happened about 3 p.m. at Spitting Caves, a shoreline formation that blows water out to sea when waves crash inside, during a high-surf advisory for the south shores of Oahu.

Ocean Safety Lt. Charles Oliveri said lifeguards on personal watercraft responded to a report of a man in the water at Spitting Caves and could see the man in the water, but couldn’t reach him because of the turbulence in the 4- to 8-foot surf.

Lifeguards, however, stayed at the spot until firefighters with scuba gear were able to retrieve the body from about 100 feet of water.

Oliveri warned that Spitting Caves, which is on the south shore of the peninsula where Portlock is, has no lifeguards and is susceptible to large waves washing across the ledges where people walk.

“I wouldn’t recommend going at all on days like this — or the flat days,” he said. “If you’re not a really good, experienced water person, I would stay clear from that area.”

He said visitors have been drawn to the attraction by videos online of people making radical dives off the cliff into the ocean.

“They’ll see it looks nice in the pictures on the Internet, but when you actually go there and jump and you can’t get back in, then you start freaking out,” he said.

Officials said the man was with four friends at the time, but he was the only one to go into the water.

Honolulu Fire Department Battalion Chief John Bowers said the man was a foreign national from Washington state who was working in Hawaii.

Friends said the man climbed down a ladder on the east side of Spitting Caves and got into the water alone, according to Bowers. When he tried to get out, he was overcome by surf and went underwater.

He said firefighters got the call about 2:50 p.m. and recovered the man’s body just before 4 p.m. Firefighters brought the body back to the boat ramp at Maunalua Bay.

“It’s a shame these people see these things on social media or wherever, come out and think they can do things, and they just don’t understand what they’re getting into — whether it’s the ocean or the mountains,” he said. “It’s just guys getting in over their head.”

It was the third death at Spitting Caves in about a year and a half.

In April 2014, a 19-year-old sailor died after jumping into the water and getting swept out to sea. About three months later, a 22-year-old woman died after she jumped into the ocean and couldn’t get out.