Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc. reported that tracking devices indicate all of the Company's rigs maintained station during Hurricane Ike, and 10 of 12 units most impacted by the storm appear to have suffered relatively little or no damage according to reports from start-up crews and visual air inspections. Of the remaining two, visual inspections by air indicate the 350-ft. IC jack-up rig Ocean Tower, which was directly in the path of the storm, lost its entire drilling package, including the derrick. An assessment team will fly to the Tower today, weather permitting. The jack-up unit Ocean Drake is in a Galveston shipyard, but due to access issues has not been inspected.
The company is working to re-crew its rigs and resume operations as quickly as practical.