A fuel tanker which ran aground near the entrance to a Scottish harbour has been freed.

The Gibraltar-registered vessel was carrying about 3,000 tonnes of gas-oil when it got into difficulties near Aberdeen Harbour.

There were fears of a major pollution incident if the tanker had been holed or began leaking oil.

Emergency services were put on standby in the event of a spillage.

No oil leaked from the tanker

However, a support vessel managed to pull the Eastgate from the rocks at about 0730 BST and the vessel was able to make it safely to Aberdeen Harbour under its own steam.

Coastguards said it appeared that the vessel was not holed or leaking oil.

A coastguard spokesman described the incident as a "near miss".

The tanker was expected to be inspected after its return to the harbour.

The alarm had been raised by harbour authorities at about 0530 BST on Monday.

Several tugs took part in the effort to free the tanker after it became stuck in sand, and coastguards were also involved in the operation.