Military transport plane takes off to aid Nepal... accompanied by 44 rescue workers and specialized equipment

[Financial News] An international emergency relief team to search for missing persons in the flood-stricken area of ​​Nepal departed around midnight on the 2nd aboard a military transport plane.
The Air Force multi-purpose aerial refueling tanker 'Cygnus' (KC-330), carrying a 44-member overseas emergency relief team, took off from Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, at around midnight on this day and headed for Kathmandu, Nepal. The transport aircraft carried high-resolution drones requested by Nepal, as well as acoustic and video detectors for rescuing buried victims, thermal imaging detectors, submersible pumps, and five rescue dogs.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Overseas Emergency Relief Team plans to conduct search and rescue operations for victims, including nine Korean nationals who are currently out of contact, on-site for approximately 10 days while maintaining close communication and cooperation with the Nepalese government. The operation will be led by Lee Kyu-ho, Director General of the Development Cooperation Bureau at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Head of the Relief Team), along with 44 relief workers from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), and the National Fire Agency.
A Foreign Ministry official stated, "This is in response to the Nepalese government's request to dispatch an emergency relief team to support search and rescue operations in the affected areas."
After arriving in Kathmandu this morning local time, the overseas emergency relief team plans to determine specific activity plans in consultation with the Nepalese government and the government's joint rapid response team.
Relief teams from China and India had already arrived at the flood-stricken site in Nepal and had been conducting ground rescue operations. In contrast, the South Korean government's Joint Rapid Response Team had been focusing on helicopter searches. However, these helicopter searches yielded no results due to Nepal's frequent refusals to permit takeoffs and difficulties with landing. Consequently, the government's Rapid Response Team belatedly dispatched a ground search team to the flood-affected area five days after the accident.
However, no significant results were achieved even by the previous day. Joint search operations with the Nepalese military were conducted centered on the Dhunche area, located about 2 km from the Weir Dam where the missing Korean worker had been employed, but no survivors were found. Drone searches were also carried out, but the result was the same.
The rapid response team conducted a joint search with the Nepalese military this morning in flood-affected areas, including the Upper Trishuli (UT)-1 hydroelectric power plant where nine missing South Koreans worked.
After conducting an aerial search of the accident area using a Nepalese military helicopter, they landed near the Weir Dam, the upper dam of the Upper Trishuli-1 power plant, and carried out a foot search alongside the Nepalese military, but no specific details regarding the whereabouts of the missing persons were confirmed.
Nine members of the rapid response team's land search team also entered an area about 2 km away from the camp and workplace where the missing people stayed, launched a drone, and searched the surrounding area.
It is reported that a nine-member overland search team was in Dhunche, but three returned to Kathmandu after their mission, leaving only six remaining. The six remaining members are continuing to consult with the Nepalese military and plan to coordinate with the international emergency relief team once it arrives. It is understood that the search will be difficult without the cooperation of Nepalese authorities due to the rugged terrain of Dhunche.


[email protected] Kim Kyung-soo Reporter