South Korean Rescue Team Blocked by Nepal Army... Search for Nine Missing People Stalls

[Financial News] The whereabouts of nine South Koreans missing after catastrophic flooding in Nepal remain unknown. The search has been hampered by rugged terrain and restrictions imposed by the Nepal Army, while China has opened the disaster site in Tibet to foreign media in an effort to quell allegations of information control and concealment.
On the 7th, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said, "It is true that ground searches have not been conducted in the areas of interest to our side," adding, "The Nepal Army has not allowed ground searches because the mountains are rugged and the terrain is dangerous."
The areas where the Korea Disaster Relief Team (KDRT) and the families of the missing are hoping to conduct intensive searches include the mountainous area behind the main camp, where the office building was located; the area around the Powerhouse; and the vicinity of Yellow Bridge south of the power plant.
However, the terrain in these areas has been significantly altered by steep mountains, dense vegetation, riverbank erosion caused by rushing water, and thick deposits of sediment. Even approaching on foot is extremely dangerous. Nepal Army authorities, who control the site, have therefore barred the team from entering, citing the safety of its members.
The KDRT has consequently focused on aerial searches using drones and helicopters, but has yet to find any meaningful clues related to the missing South Koreans. Efforts to track the missing people’s mobile phones, which had raised hopes, have also stalled. MOFA explained, "We are holding related discussions with the Nepalese authorities, but sufficient information for location tracking has not yet been gathered," adding, "There has been progress, but we are not yet at the stage where tracking is possible."
Meanwhile, Xinhua News Agency reported that "the State Council Information Office of the People's Republic of China and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China invited foreign media from the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Brazil and other countries to the site of the debris-flow damage at Gyirong Port in the Tibet Autonomous Region on the 5th and 6th."
According to the report, Chinese authorities emphasized to foreign journalists that they were actively sharing disaster-related information with Nepal. The move is interpreted as an effort to dismiss international allegations that China had controlled or concealed information related to the catastrophic flooding.
Chinese authorities explained, "As of 6 p.m. on the 6th, 43 people had died and 519 were missing. The diplomatic missions of the countries concerned in China were notified through diplomatic channels about 261 missing people from 23 countries identified as foreign nationals." On the Nepalese side, 1,331 bodies have been recovered so far, and approximately 5,000 people remain missing.
[email protected] Hong Chae-wan Reporter