Oslo - All 10 crew members were safely evacuated Friday from a freighter that ran aground and was listing heavily in a fjord south-east of Bergen, western Norway, officials said.

The crew were picked up by a ferry that was diverted to the scene.

A spokesman for the southern Norwegian Joint Rescue Coordination Centre based in Stavanger said it was not clear why the vessel ran aground in the Silda fjord.

The Malta-registered freighter Mirabelle was loaded with timber, and there were no immediate reports that the vessel was leaking oil. (dpa)