The F/V Showa Maru, a squid fishing vessel operated by the Yonabaru–Nishihara Fishermen’s Cooperative Association, departed Tozoe Fishing Port in Yonabaru City on November 21, 2024. On board were three experienced crew members, setting out for an extended squid-flag fishing voyage in the waters off Okinawa. The men were well prepared for the demanding trip ahead with their vessel stocked, engines checked, and communication equipment ready. For nearly two weeks, their days and nights followed the steady rhythm of life at sea: long hours of fishing, maintenance, and the quiet isolation of the open ocean.

But in the early hours of December 3, while the vessel drifted quietly and the crew slept below deck, something went terribly wrong. A faint, acrid odor crept through the air, sharp and unfamiliar. It was the captain who smelled it first. When he opened the engine room hatch, he was met with a wave of heat and smoke. Flames flickered within the confined space, feeding hungrily on oil and insulation. Within seconds, he realized the fire was spreading too fast to control.

Acting swiftly, the captain grabbed the vessel’s radio and called out to the F/V Shoyo Maru No. 8, another fishing boat from the same cooperative that was operating nearby. His voice was urgent but steady as he reported the fire, gave their current position, and requested immediate assistance. At the same time, he activated both of the ACR personal locator beacons (PLBs) the crew carried.

With the engine room fully ablaze and the smoke thickening, there was no time to spare. The three crewmen donned their life jackets, abandoned the vessel, and leapt into the dark sea below. Clinging to a buoy, they watched helplessly as the Showa Maru burned against the horizon, the glow of the fire reflected in the black water around them.

Minutes dragged into half an hour, the only sounds the hiss of distant flames and the rhythm of the waves. Then, through the darkness, came the faint but unmistakable thrum of engines, the F/V Shoyo Maru No. 8 racing toward the signal. Moments later, their fellow fishermen spotted them adrift and pulled them aboard, shaken but alive.

Shortly thereafter, a Japan Coast Guard vessel arrived on scene to assist and coordinate the recovery. At 07:40 that morning, the rescued crew members were safely transferred to the F/V Shoshin Maru, a vessel belonging to the Sashiki Nakagusuku Fishermen’s Cooperative Association. Two days later, on December 5 at 07:00, they reached Baten Port in Nanjo City, Okinawa Prefecture, exhausted, but deeply grateful to have made it home.

The Showa Maru was lost to the fire, but thanks to the quick actions of her captain, the cooperation of nearby vessels, and the reliability of their emergency equipment, three lives were saved that morning in the vast and unpredictable waters off Okinawa.