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South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and Nepalese Minister for Foreign Affairs Shisir Khanal hold talks on the 6th to discuss measures to respond to flood damage, conduct search operations, and provide relief assistance. / Courtesy of Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, currently visiting Nepal, met with Nepalese Minister for Foreign Affairs Shisir Khanal on the 6th and requested the Nepalese government's attention and support to ensure a thorough search for nine unaccounted-for South Korean nationals.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that day, Minister Cho and Minister Khanal discussed the current status of on-site search and rescue operations for victims, the Nepalese government's recovery efforts, and support measures from the South Korean government.

Minister Cho had previously spoken with Minister Khanal by phone twice, on the 27th and 31st of last month immediately following the floods in Nepal, requesting special attention to the search and rescue of the unaccounted-for South Korean citizens. During this face-to-face meeting, he reiterated his request for active cooperation. In particular, with Nepalese authorities granting search approvals on a limited basis in light of weather conditions and rugged terrain, Cho reportedly requested cooperation to enable broader search efforts.

At the meeting, Minister Cho expressed deep condolences to all those affected by the floods in Nepal and called for thorough efforts in searching for the South Korean nationals.

In addition, he explained plans to provide in-kind assistance worth approximately 130 million won alongside 1 million dollars in humanitarian aid through the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, "South Korea and Nepal agreed to strengthen cooperation in addressing climate change on the international stage, while maintaining close communication and collaboration to support seamless search and rescue operations as well as the recovery of daily life for the Nepalese people."

Minister Cho plans to remain on site through the 7th to continue further discussions with Nepalese government officials. He will also encourage members of the Korea Disaster Relief Team (KDRT), meet with local families of the unaccounted-for nationals to offer condolences, and hold meetings with officials from South Korean companies operating locally.

On the ground in Nepal, search operations to locate the missing continued. The KDRT deployed 10 personnel that day into a tunnel at the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydroelectric Power Project construction site near a weir dam, presumed to be the location where the South Korean nationals lost contact. Three personnel were also deployed around the "Powerhouse," where South Korean nationals had previously been stranded before being rescued, to conduct drone-assisted searches.

Earlier on the 5th, the KDRT rescued one Chinese survivor from the tunnel at the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydroelectric Power Project construction site and recovered one body of unidentified nationality. Having identified the locations of two additional bodies, they also plan to proceed with recovery operations. This rescue of a survivor marks the ninth such operation since the KDRT was established in 2007.

Rescue footage released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that day showed KDRT personnel conducting rescue operations in harsh conditions, submerged up to their upper torsos in debris flows. They navigated through mud inside the tunnel, which was strewn with steel structures severed or bent by the flooding, to continue the search.

Alongside search and rescue operations, the KDRT is also supporting Nepal's disaster recovery. In response to a request from Nepalese authorities that morning, the team visited a Nepalese military unit in the Battar area and delivered 262 body bags.

                                                                                                            Mok Yong-jae