(3rd LD) S. Korea dispatches disaster relief team to Nepal to support flood recovery efforts

Seoul, September 2 - A South Korean disaster relief team has departed for Nepal to aid in search, rescue, and recovery efforts following catastrophic floods, according to the foreign ministry. The Korea Disaster Relief Team (KDRT), comprising 44 individuals from various agencies, including the foreign ministry and KOICA, embarked on their journey shortly before midnight on Tuesday via a KC-330 Cygnus multirole tanker transport aircraft.

The team is anticipated to arrive in Nepal at 5:55 a.m. local time, carrying 700 pieces of equipment and five search-and-rescue dogs. They will remain in Nepal for approximately 10 days, focusing on search and rescue operations, particularly for nine South Korean nationals who remain unaccounted for. The deployment could potentially be extended if needed.

This is the KDRT's 12th mission to a disaster-stricken region. The recent floods and landslides struck Nepal's north-central Himalayan area near the Nepal-Tibet border last Wednesday, resulting in over 800 fatalities and around 3,000 people reported missing. The floods prompted the Nepali government to request assistance from South Korea for search-and-rescue operations in Rasuwa district.

Earlier this week, a separate South Korean rapid response team arrived in Nepal, conducting ground and aerial searches for the missing South Koreans. The nine missing individuals were employed by Doosan Enerbility and Korea South-East Power Co. at a hydroelectric power plant construction site in Rasuwa when the disaster struck. One body has been recovered from a tunnel at the Upper Trishuli-1 hydropower plant, where the missing Koreans were believed to be working, though the victim's identity and nationality remain unconfirmed.

The rapid response team collaborated with the Nepali military on Tuesday for a joint search, which included an aerial search using a Nepal Army helicopter before proceeding with a ground search in collaboration with Nepali military personnel. Despite the search efforts, no significant leads have emerged regarding the whereabouts of the missing nine.

The team remains committed to searching for the missing individuals using every available means, in coordination with Nepalese authorities and the disaster relief team.