North Sea oil platform leak under control

0 Comments | AFP, May, 2008

OSLO (AFP) — More than 150 workers were evacuated from a North Sea oil platform Saturday amid fears that a leak would spark an explosion, but by mid-afternoon the rig's operator said the situation was under control.

"The leak from the tank on (the) Statfjord A (platform) has been stopped, and the pumping of oil-containing water to sea has also been stopped," Norwegian energy giant StatoilHydro said in a statement.

Two helicopters had been used to evacuate 156 of the 217 people working on the platform, located some 200 kilometres (125 miles) from the Norwegian coast, to nearby rigs after an oil leak was discovered at around 6:00 am (0400 GMT).

A storage cell had begun leaking oil into one of the platform's three shafts as work was being performed on a pipe,...