Five weeks after a devastating earthquake and tsunami ravaged the northeastern coast of Japan, there is no sign that the resulting nuclear crisis is close to resolution. The country’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency now says it is “highly likely” the suppression unit of reactor No.2 has a hole in it, probably the result of one of  the explosions that have occurred at the facility.

The crippled reactor also has a basement full of highly radioactive water, as much as 20,000 tons. In fact, so much contaminated water has accumulated that engineers are investigating other ways to keep the reactor core cool. Tests on the spent fuel rods will determine if they are leaking radiation.

The evacuation zone around the Fukushima-Daiichi plant was expanded earlier this week, and the crisis was elevated to a level 7, putting it on par with the Chernobyl accident. The total cost of the multiple disasters is now estimated to be $300 billion.