Problem ejecting a usb external drive on a MacbookAir

I have had my MacbookAir for over a year and also purchased a Seagate FreeAgent 350GB external usb drive. I never had any problem ejecting it. It would eject in a few seconds once i make sure no application is using it. The other day, while it was mounted and running, I accidentally kicked the usb cable and it gave me a message that the drive was not ejected properly. Since that day, every time I try to eject it, it does not, and I have to wait 2 to 3 minutes before I get the message on the screen telling me that the finder is using it. I have to shutdown every time I need to eject the drive. When I mount the drive on another computer running windows, it ejects with no problem.
I have a lot of files backed up on that drive. Can someone please give me a hint. Is there a disk utility that could repair whatever damage was done to it without loosing my files/

Thank you

Is there a disk utility that could repair whatever damage was done to it without loosing my files/

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Open your Applications folder, click on Utilities, select Disk Utility. Highlight your Seagate on the left side, select the First Aid tab on the right, and then select verify and repair.