By Hideyuki Sano
18 June 2011 TOKYO (Reuters) – A rise in radiation halted the clean-up of radioactive water at Japan’s Fukushimi nuclear power station on Saturday hours after it got under way, a fresh setback to efforts to restore control over the quake-stricken plant. The power plant has been leaking radiation into the atmosphere ever since the March 11 quake and tsunami and both China and South Korea have expressed concern over the possibility of further leaks into the sea. Tokyo Electric Power Company, the operator of the Fukushima Daiichi plant, said it expected to resume the clean-up within a week. The plan hit a new hurdle as Japan marked 100 days since the earthquake and tsunami left nearly 24,000 dead or missing and knocked out cooling systems at the plant. Buddhist memorial services were held throughout the country on the day when the bereaved traditionally seek closure from grief. A statement issued by the utility, known as Tepco, said the suspension was prompted by a faster than expected rise in radiation in a part of the system intended to absorb caesium. “At the moment, we haven’t specified the reason,” a Tepco spokesman told a news conference. “So we can’t say when we can resume the operation. But I’d say it’s not something that would take weeks.” […]

Radiation spike halts work at Japan nuclear plant