Partial meltdown likely underway at reactor: Japanese official

This story last updated at 11:07 EST, March 12, 2011. A partial meltdown was likely underway at a second nuclear reactor, a top Japanese official said Sunday, as authorities frantically tried to prevent a similar threat from nearby unit following a catastrophic earthquake and tsunami.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said operators released slightly radioactive air from Unit 3 Sunday, while injecting water into it as an effort to reduce pressure and temperature to save the reactor from a possible meltdown.

Still, a partial meltdown in the unit is “highly possible,” he told reporters. The Globe and Mail