High radioactivity in seawater off Japan N-plant

Tokyo: Radioactive iodine in sea-water off Japan's crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant rose to 1,850 times the usual level from 1,250 times measured on Saturday, Japan's nuclear safety agency said on Sunday.

Separately, senior agency official Hidehiko Nishiyama said leakage from reactor vessels was likely to have been the cause for high levels of radiation found in water that has accumulated in turbine buildings.

The radioactive water within the plant has hampered workers from restoring its cooling systems.