Salmon giant Mowi confirmed the damage to the pen on the Robertson Island farm that occurred on the weekend of Dec. 22 was 'very likely' due to an electrical fire, the company said in a statement.

The company confirmed about 20,000 salmon escaped, since workers were able to remove 1,200 fish that were remaining in the pen. About 21,000 salmon were left in the pen following the incident since most of the fish had been harvested the week prior.

Many of the escaped fish might have been eaten by seals and sea lions in the area, the company said.