Empress of the North has had trouble before

The Empress of the North, a riverboat-style cruise ship that ran aground off the Alaska coast today, has had several problems since it began operating in mid-2003. A look at its history:

— 2002: Built by Nichols Bros. Boat Builders on Whidbey Island, Wash., for American West Steamboat Co., which later merged with Delta Queen Steamboat Co. and became Majestic America Line.

— August 2003: Becomes the first sternwheeler to cruise Southeast Alaska's Inside Passage in more than a century.

— Oct. 22, 2003: Hits a navigation lock at the Ice Harbor dam on the Snake River near Pasco. The lock was closed to all traffic for two days and remained closed to recreational boats for about five weeks, when it was repaired by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

— Nov. 27, 2003: Develops steering problems on the Columbia River near The Dalles, Ore., and runs aground. A passenger and two crew members suffer minor injuries. The ship works free on its own power and ties up at a barge dock.

— Feb. 25, 2006: Fails a sanitation test by inspectors from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

— Mid-March, 2006: 26 passengers and seven crew members get sick with vomiting and diarrhea during a five-day Columbia River cruise.

— March 24, 2006: Runs aground on a sandbar near Washougal, Wash., as it tries to avoid another barge. Nearly 200 passengers are evacuated. Crews pump 20,000 gallons of diesel fuel from the vessel to make it easier to refloat, and two tug boats free it.

— May 14, 2007: Begins taking water after it runs aground off the Alaska coast early today, forcing the evacuation of more than 200 passengers before it is able to move again with a Coast Guard escort.