LONDON/ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - An oil rig that ran aground in Alaska on New Year's Eve in "near hurricane" conditions dragged two vessels trying to control it more than 10 miles toward a wave-battered rocky shore before the crews cut it loose to save themselves.
The stricken Kulluk oil rig is owned by Royal Dutch/Shell and is a vital part of its controversial Arctic oil drilling program, which has encountered several problems.
The 28,000-tonne, saucer-shaped rig was pushed toward the shore by waves up to 35 feet and winds up to 62 mph, dragging its main towing vessel the Aiviq and a tug, the Alert, behind it.
"We are talking about near hurricane-strength conditions," said Darci Sinclair of the Kulluk Tow Incident Unified Command, set up by the U.S. Coast Guard and the companies involved.
The unified command said the Kulluk was now "upright and stable" on Sitkalidak Island in the Gulf of Alaska. Salvage experts spent three hours aboard it Wednesday for a structural assessment to be used by Netherlands-based Smit Salvage.
Alaska oil rig drags tugs for miles before grounding - Read Full Story at US- Reuters
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