TTSB releases the final report on the fishing vessel 'JI WEN NO.1688' which sank after catching fire in the high seas of the South Pacific.

Taiwan Transportation Safety Board (TTSB) has released the final report regarding the investigation of the fishing vessel "JI WEN NO.1688" which sank after catching fire in the high seas of the South Pacific.

On June 4, 2024, the Taiwanese fishing vessel "JI WEN NO.1688", number CT6-1471, experienced a fire approximately 448 nautical miles southwest of Betio Island, Kiribati, in the South Pacific Ocean. The 4 crew members were rescued by a nearby fishing vessel. Unfortunately, the "JI WEN NO.1688" continued to burn and ultimately sank on the night of June 4. Fortunately, this occurrence resulted in no casualties.

By Taiwan's Transportation Occurrence Investigation Act and the provisions of the Casualty Investigation Code of the International Maritime Organization, the TTSB is an independent transportation occurrence investigation agency responsible for conducting this occurrence investigation. The investigation team also included members from the Maritime and Port Bureau Ministry of Transportation and Communications, the Fisheries Agency Ministry of Agriculture, and the shipowner.

Based on the available factual information and analysis, a fire broke out in the engine room of the fishing vessel "JI WEN NO.1688" while it was drifting at sea and undergoing repairs to its main engine. No one witnessed the origin of the fire. The probable cause was determined to be the dripping of residual oil from the oil transfer pipe into the high-temperature area of the auxiliary engine when the crew retracted the oil transfer pipe to the engine room, which ignited a fire. This case is classified as a Class 3 report*.

This final report was reviewed and approved by the 70^th TTSB Board Meeting held on December 13^th, 2024.

The full final report is in Chinese only and available for download at the website: https://www.ttsb.gov.tw

Ya Ting CHANG, Secretariat Office
Tel: +886-2-7727-6210
E-mail: [email protected]

Michael GUAN, Investigator-In-Charge
Marine Occurrence Investigation Division
Tel: +886-2-7727-6202
E-mail: [email protected]

*Class 3 report: Due to insufficient factual information such as physical evidence and witness testimony, or the loss or inability to obtain evidence, it is impossible to collect, analyze, and investigate the occurrence.