福島核電站積水核幅射水平急劇增高
Japan says levels of radiation contamination in water inside part of the Fukushima nuclear power plant have increased sharply. Workers at the plant spent the day Sunday on improvements to the water pumping system that is keeping the reactors cool.
日本政府表示，福島核電站內部積水的核幅射水平急劇增高。星期天，核電站的工作人員繼續改善冷卻核反應堆的排水系統。
The level of radioactive Iodine-134 in water in the basement of a turbine building adjoining the plant's Number-2 reactor spiked to more than 10 million times that of normal conditions.
福島核電站2號反應堆汽輪機房地下室積水的放射性碘-134的水平急劇上升，達到正常標準的1千萬倍。
At that level it is a thousands times more radioactive than water found in the neighboring Number-1 and -3 reactor buildings. It was in the Number-3 building on Thursday that two workers sustained heavy radiation contamination after standing in water without wearing boots.
比相鄰的1號和3號反應堆積水的核放射性水平也要高出1千倍以上。上星期四，兩名工作人員在沒有穿靴子的情況下站在3號反應堆的積水裏，從而遭受了嚴重的核幅射。
Government officials and plant operators say they are not sure where the radioactive contamination is coming from. But there is a possibility it is coming from the reactor core.
政府官員和核電站管理人員表示，他們不清楚核放射來自何處，但有可能來自核反應堆芯。核電站周圍海水中的核放射水平也有提高。
Levels of contamination are also rising in seawater around the plant.
Hidehiko Nishiyama, deputy director-general of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency says Iodine-131 levels in seawater have been measured at 1,850 times the legal limit, up from 1,250 times the day before. He says the levels do not pose any immediate danger to human health.
日本原子力安全保安院副院長西山英彥說，海水中所含碘-134的水平已經達到法定標準的1,850倍，比前一天提高了1,250倍。他還表示，這一水平並不對人體健康構成立即的威脅。
Work at the plant continued on Sunday to improve the water-pumping system that is attempting to keep the reactor and spent fuel rods cool.
星期天，核電站內的工作人員繼續改善冷卻核反應堆和燃料棒的排水系統。
Fire trucks were due to be replaced by portable pumps and the water supply from seawater to fresh water. There is a worry that continued use of seawater could corrode pipes and valves and cause future problems.
他們計劃用消防車來取代便攜式水泵，用淡水取代海水。專家們擔心，繼續使用海水會腐蝕管道和閥門，給今後帶來更多的問題。
The situation at the plant does appear to be stabilizing, although the government warns it will take a long time for things to be brought fully under control.
核電站的情況目前看來正在穩定下來。但是日本政府警告說，需要很長一段時間才能把局勢完全掌控下來。
More than two weeks have passed since a massive earthquake and tsunami destroyed large portions of Japan's eastern coast. Japanese police say about 10,500 people are confirmed dead and 16,600 are missing.
日本發生強大地震和海嘯，東海岸部分地區遭受毀滅性打擊已經過去兩個星期了。日本警方表示，已經證實有1萬零500人死亡，16,600人仍舊失蹤。
