Navy says sub leaked radiation since 2006
WASHINGTON (CNN) — A U.S. Navy submarine leaked trace amounts of radioactive water for two years as it made port calls in Japan and other Asian nations, the Navy said Thursday.
Last week, Navy officials told Japan that the USS Houston, a Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine, had made one port call — in March — while leaking the contaminated fluid.
But after reviewing records of the sub, the Navy told Japanese officials Thursday that the Houston had been leaking much longer, since June 2006, and had made port calls to Japanese bases at Sasebo, Yokosuka and Okinawa before the leak was discovered.
Officials also have told the governments of Malaysia and Singapore that the sub made port calls to those countries while leaking the radioactive water, Navy officials said. The Houston also made stops in Guam and Hawaii.
A Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tokyo appreciated the United States reporting the new information promptly.
At the same time, what remains to be nailed down is the cause, said the spokesman, Hiroshi Suzuki. We still need to get to the bottom of the cause of this leak. We would like to get a full explanation.
Suzuki said the U.S. government has assured Japan it is taking all precautionary measures to guarantee safety. In addition, Japan also conducts round-the-clock monitoring of U.S. vessels in Japanese ports.
