South Korea to Send Emergency Relief Team to Nepal at Kathmandu’s Request

South Korea will send 44 emergency responders to Nepal after Kathmandu requested personnel and equipment for search-and-rescue operations in flood-hit Rasुवा district. The Korea Disaster Relief Team is scheduled to leave on a military transport aircraft on the night of the decision.

The team will operate for about 10 days while coordinating with the Nepalese government. Its mission includes searching for and rescuing victims, including South Korean nationals, in the affected areas.

Lee Kyu-ho, director-general of the Foreign Ministry’s development cooperation bureau, will lead the team. Members come from the Foreign Ministry, the Korea International Cooperation Agency and the National Fire Agency.

The South Korean government said the dispatch followed a formal request from Nepal the previous day. It said a public-private overseas emergency relief council approved the deployment. South Korea had already provided $1 million in humanitarian aid through international organizations on August 27 and said it would continue looking for ways to meet needs on the ground.

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We will continue to actively seek ways to provide the support needed locally in Nepal.