Tepco finds highly toxic strontium in Fukushima groundwater

TOKYO, June 19 (Reuters) - Tokyo Electric Power, the utility that operates the Japanese nuclear plant devastated two years ago by an earthquake and tsunami, said on Wednesday it had found high levels of toxic strontium in groundwater at the plant.

The utility, known as Tepco, found traces of strontium-90 in groundwater near the turbine building of reactor No. 2, the company said.

Tepco has struggled with the clean-up of Fukushima, the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster in 25 years, since a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami knocked out power and cooling to the station, causing meltdowns in three reactors.

Recent mishaps, including two power outages, have heightened concerns about Fukushima's stability and called into question Tepco's ability to decommission the plant. (Reporting by Osamu Tsukimori; Editing by Aaron Sheldrick)