Oil drill ship hits Alaskan coast

A large drill ship belonging to the Shell oil company ran aground off Alaska on Monday night (December 31) after drifting in stormy weather, company and government officials said.

The ship, the Kulluk, broke away from one of its tow lines on Monday afternoon and was driven to rocks just off Kodiak Island, where it grounded at about 9 p.m. Alaska time (0600GMT Tuesday), officials said.

The 18-member crew had been evacuated by the Coast Guard late Saturday because of risks from the storm.

With winds reported at up to 60 miles (100 km) an hour and Gulf of Alaska seas of up to 35 feet (11 m), responders were unable to keep the ship from grounding, said Coast Guard Commander Shane Montoya, the leader of the incident command team.

There were three minor injuries to people responding to the incident but all personnel have returned to duty.