North Sea oil workers evacuated

Rig workers were airlifted to nearby platforms after the leak was detected

More than 200 workers have been evacuated from a North Sea oil platform after an oil leak raised fears of an explosion.

Rescue helicopters flew to the Statfjord A platform in Norwegian waters to assist with the evacuation.

Some 60 workers remained on the rig to repair the leak, said a spokesman for StatoilHydro, the platform's operators.

Two people were slightly exposed to gas in the incident, but were said to be in good health after medical treatment.

No-one else was injured in the incident, which company spokesman Ola Morten Aanestad described to AP as a "severe situation".

He said the leak occurred as workers were performing maintenance work on an oil pipe in one of the platform shafts.

Rig workers were airlifted to nearby platforms after the leak was detected at around 0430 GMT.

A team has been mobilised to contain the oil spill, StatoilHydro said.

StatoilHydro operates three rigs in the Statfjord field, which produces 150,000 barrels of oil a day.