SINGAPORE — A massive, three-hour firefighting operation unfolded in the Johor Strait on Wednesday night, June 24, 2026 after a violent blaze broke out at a floating fish farm off the Lorong Halus Jetty.

The Singapore Civil Defense Force (SCDF) was alerted to the incident near Pulau Ubin and Pulau Ketam at approximately 8:10 PM. Marine firefighting vessels from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the Airport Emergency Service (AES) were rapidly deployed to combat the flames.

While official investigations into the cause of the fire are ongoing, operators believe a severe weather event triggered the disaster. The fire reportedly began when lightning struck moored fishing boats in the area, quickly engulfing them.

The flames rapidly spread to adjacent aquaculture structures. Danny Chua, the owner of Ketam Island Fisheries—the primary farm affected—suspects that a lightning strike directly hit the solar panels installed on his facility, bypassing the farm's lightning rods.

As the inferno grew, workers from neighboring fish farms bravely rushed forward to assist authorities in containing the fire. It took responders more than three hours of intense effort to fully extinguish the blaze.

The Fish Farmers Association of Singapore (FFAS) confirmed that at least two floating fish farms rearing high-value sea bass were heavily damaged. FFAS President Daniel Tay noted that the affected owners were left deeply distraught by the scale of the destruction.

"Many aquaculture cages have been destroyed," Tay stated, adding that half of the affected farm space has been rendered completely unusable.

The fire caused substantial infrastructure damage and financial losses, completely burning down two of Ketam Island Fisheries' main sheds, which contained expensive equipment and fish food. The intense heat also partially melted and submerged the farm's containment nets, allowing an estimated 5% of the sea bass population—valued at roughly S$10,000—to escape into the open sea. Total losses for the primary farm are estimated at S$120,000 (US$92,500), an amount that excludes the additional S$50,000 to S$60,000 required just to rebuild a single shed.

Fortunately, no one was on the primary farm at the exact time of the fire, and the SCDF confirmed that there were no reported injuries from the incident.

While the surrounding New Ocean Fish Farm was temporarily cordoned off by police as a precaution, its owner expressed relief that their infrastructure escaped lasting damage. Despite the sudden loss of stock, affected operators estimate they have enough remaining fish to fulfill supply commitments to local restaurants and eateries for the next few months.

The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) has stated it is monitoring the situation and is working closely with the SCDF to provide necessary assistance to the distraught farm owners as they begin the long process of clearing the debris and rebuilding.