Tokyo Electric Power Co. says it has found water leaks around the bottom of the containment vessel in the reactor 1 building at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, the first time leaks have been detected near or possibly in any of the three containment vessels that experienced a meltdown in March 2011.
Tepco said Wednesday it was using a camera-equipped remote-controlled boat to check conditions when it found the two leaks.
One leak came from a rupture in a sand-cushioned drain pipe installed at the bottom of the containment vessel. The pipe is not directly connected to the containment vessel and is used to drain condensation that forms on the vessel's surface.