New radioactive leaks at Japan's Fukushima

Tepco said that the radiation level at Fukushima was about 100 millisieverts per hour. (AFP)


Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) said on Tuesday the leak was believed to be continuing at Fukushima and that it had not yet pinpointed the source of it.

Tepco said puddles with extremely high radiation levels have been found near the water tanks at the plant.

The radiation level was about 100 millisieverts per hour, it said.

"This means you are exposed to the level of radiation in an hour that a nuclear plant worker is allowed to be exposed to in five years," a Tepco official told reporters.

The company later said it had identified which tank was leaking but had yet to find the spot from where it was leaking.

"We have instructed Tepco to find the source of contaminated water ... and to seal the leakage point," an official from the Nuclear Regulation Authority said.



Could contaminate groundwater
Tepco admitted it was possible the toxic water could contaminate groundwater and flow into the Pacific Ocean "in the longer term", but said it was working to avoid such a situation.



So far four tonnes of the spilled water had been retrieved since Monday evening when Tepco started the recovery operation, the company said.

Tepco has faced a growing catalogue of incidents at the plant including several leaks of radioactive water, more than two years after the worst nuclear disaster in a generation triggered by a huge quake and tsunami in March 2011.


Cleanup at Fukushima




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