Huge cracks found in floor near Fukushima radioactive water tanks

Two cracks were discovered in a concrete floor near radioactive water storage tanks on the grounds of the stricken Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant, the plant operator said. The cracks were discovered on February 11, Voice of Russia reported. Officials with Tokyo Electric Power Co. said some of the contaminated water from the melting snow blanketing the area may have seeped into the ground through the cracks. Workers on patrol discovered the cracks, stretching 12 meters and 8 meters, respectively, near a group of storage tanks where 300 tons of highly radioactive water was found in August last year to have leaked. The tanks hold contaminated water generated in the process of cooling the crippled reactors. TEPCO detected up to 58 becquerels of radioactive cesium and up to 2,100 becquerels of radioactive strontium per liter of melted snow in the area. Freezing temperatures may have cracked the concrete, the TEPCO officials added.