Sixty-three of "I-1"s survivors were evacuated from Guadalcanal on 1 February 1943. When they reached Rabaul and were debriefed, the Japanese concluded that code materials aboard her wreck were in danger of compromise. Meanwhile, "I-1"s torpedo officer, two of her junior officers, and 11 men from Japanese destroyers reached the wreck in a "Daihatsu" after 19:00 on 2 February 1943. They attached two depth charges and four smaller demolition charges to the wreck and set them off in an attempt to destroy it by detonating torpedoes still aboard "I-1". Although the torpedoes did not explode and the wreck was not destroyed, the depth charges caused enough damage to prevent salvage of "I-1". Evacuated from Guadalcanal on 7 February 1943—the day the Guadalcanal campaign ended with the completion of Operation Ke, the Japanese evacuation of all forces from the island—the three officers subsequently reported their failure to destroy the wreck after they arrived at Rabaul.