Search Continues for Nine Missing South Koreans in Nepal Floods

A South Korean government joint rapid response team and Doosan Enerbility Co. have launched ground and aerial search operations for nine South Koreans missing after massive floods and landslides struck the Rasuwa district of Nepal last Wednesday. The missing individuals include six Doosan employees and three employees of Korea South-East Power Co. who were working at a hydroelectric power plant construction site. On Monday, one of two helicopters secured by Doosan Enerbility received clearance from local authorities to resume search efforts, filming video and looking for signs of the missing. Simultaneously, a government team consisting of foreign ministry, police, and fire officials began a ground search toward Ramche, located approximately one to two kilometers from the site. This ground operation was initiated after bad weather and restrictions by Nepalese authorities on foreign helicopters hindered previous aerial efforts. South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun spoke with his Nepalese counterpart, Shisir Khanal, to request the assistance of the Nepalese military in searching areas where communication was lost. In a separate development, nine of ten South Koreans who were previously rescued from the same disaster returned to South Korea on Monday. These individuals underwent health checks and were reported to be physically and mentally exhausted, though none required hospitalization. The tenth rescued individual, the site manager, remained in Nepal to support the ongoing search and rescue operations. Foreign media reports indicate that the floods in Nepal have killed more than 800 people and left around 3,000 others missing.