At 9:45 p.m. on January 29 (the first day of Tet), officers and soldiers of Ship 796, Squadron 511, Brigade 127, Naval Region 5 Command extinguished the fire on the Kien Giang fishing boat with registration number KG-928xx TS.
Previously, at 6:30 p.m., Ship 796 was performing its mission to prevent and combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in the Vietnam-Cambodia historical waters when it discovered a fishing boat on fire, located about 22 nautical miles southwest of Cape Ganh Dau (Phu Quoc Island, Kien Giang Province).
As soon as it discovered and received an urgent rescue request from the fishing boat, Ship 796 reported to the Naval Region 5 Command Headquarters for instructions and quickly maneuvered to the location of the fishing boat in distress.
At 7:00 p.m., officers and soldiers of Ship 796 approached the burning fishing boat and quickly deployed fire-fighting measures. By 9:45 p.m. the same day, officers and soldiers of Ship 796 had controlled the fire on the fishing boat.
After the fire was extinguished, officers and soldiers of Ship 796 continued to assist the distressed fishing boat in repairing some of the damage and coordinated with and guided Ship KG 94131TS in making a towline to tow the distressed boat back to shore for repairs. At 7:30 a.m. on January 30, the distressed fishing boat was safely towed by Ship KG 94131 TS to Dat Do Cape (Phu Quoc Island).
The KG 928xxTS boat is owned by Ms. Tran Thi Tinh, residing in Rach Gia City, Kien Giang Province. There were 3 fishermen on board working as double trawlers. The fire did not cause any casualties but it punctured the engine compartment and burned down many of the fishermen’s properties.
