Kathmandu: South Korea will maintain a joint government response team in Nepal to continue efforts to locate nine South Korean nationals who have remained missing since massive floods hit the country last month, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday. The decision follows the conclusion of the second contingent of the Korea Disaster Relief Team's (KDRT) seven-day mission, which is set to return home.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the joint public-private emergency relief council made the decision last week to keep a presence in Nepal. The nine missing South Koreans, comprising six employees of Doosan Enerbility Co. and three from Korea South-East Power Co., disappeared on August 26 following floods and landslides in Rasuwa District near the Nepal-Tibet border, where they were working at a hydropower plant construction site.
The government response team, distinct from the KDRT, will remain in Nepal to conduct search-and-rescue operations in collaboration with Nepalese authorities and offer support to the families of the missing. The team will include eight members: three from the foreign ministry, two from the National Fire Agency, and three from the National Police Agency, with the possibility of additional members being dispatched if necessary.
"The two firefighters were part of the second KDRT contingent but have decided to remain in Nepal as members of the response team. The team will continue efforts to determine the whereabouts of the missing Koreans," a ministry official said. The three police officers will work with Nepal's Central Forensic Science Laboratory, utilizing four rapid DNA analysis devices provided by South Korea to aid in victim identification.
The first KDRT group, consisting of 44 members, was deployed earlier this month for a 10-day mission. However, officials noted that operations have faced challenges due to rugged terrain, adverse weather conditions, and the risk of infectious diseases, with no signs of the missing individuals found so far.
Nepal has transitioned its efforts from search and rescue to reconstruction and recovery, but Seoul remains committed to supporting the search for the missing Koreans in cooperation with Nepalese authorities and corporate rescue teams.