SYDNEY, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- Two people have died and a third has been hospitalized in a serious condition following a drowning incident in a river in the eastern Australian state of New South Wales (NSW), authorities said on Monday.

File photo: Xinhua

According to authorities, emergency services were called to reports of a group of people struggling in the water in a river near the small town of Gleniffer, over 400 km northeast of Sydney, around 6:45 p.m. local time on Sunday.

Police officers arrived and were told that two men and a woman, all believed to be aged in their 30s, began to struggle soon after entering the water.

All three were pulled from the water, but the two men could not be revived and died at the scene.

The woman was taken to a hospital in the nearby coastal city of Coffs Harbour in a serious condition.

The incident occurred on a long weekend in Australia, with Monday a national public holiday to celebrate Australia Day.

Surf Life Saving Australia on Friday issued a warning for people to prioritize safety around water over the long weekend.

It said that the risk of coastal drowning is over three times higher on public holidays and long weekends and is further amplified when people choose to swim at locations not patrolled by lifeguards.