Rat infestation leaves rogue ship stranded off Alaska

Reuters ^ | October 3, 2011 | Yereth Rosen

[decimon]

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - A rogue fishing vessel caught in the North Pacific four weeks ago was stranded off the coast of Alaska on Monday while authorities prepared to remove the crew and kill a large number of rats on board, a U.S. Coast Guard spokeswoman said.

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The rats found on board pose another environmental problem: Potential invasion by a nonnative species that could wipe out large numbers of Alaska seabirds and other natural life.

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The case is challenging for law-enforcement because the ship is not registered in any country, Francis said.

The crew claimed the ship was registered as Indonesian, but the Indonesian government denied such registration, she said. "At that point they became stateless," she said.

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[Lurker]

The North American Beaver can hold its breath for half an hour.

I once held my breath for 4 minutes during an encounter with a North American Beaver.

[Secret Agent Man]

1. Take all crew off that do not want to die.

2. Sink the damn ship.

[Amberdawn]

I imagine they would copter them off, then put our own people aboard to solve the rat problem.