A man has gone missing while swimming at a lake in Victoria’s alpine region, northeast of Melbourne.

The 34-year-old was swimming with friends in Lake Eildon, near Jerusalem Creek Track, on New Year’s Day when he appeared to run into difficulty and disappeared underwater about 4.30pm.

Friends raised the alarm after he did not resurface.

Local police and other emergency services scoured the lake and foreshore into the evening before suspending their search overnight.

The search resumed on Monday morning, with police divers called in.

There have been at least 22 fatal drownings across the country since the start of summer, prompting a warning from life savers for Australians to stay safe.

Sixteen people drowned over the last New Year’s long weekend.