Foreign Minister: "10 Koreans Isolated by Nepal Flood Confirmed Safe"... Missing Now Total 9 (Update)

Joint Rapid-Response Team to Depart for Nepal on the 27th
Korea and Nepal Foreign Ministers to Speak on the 27th
Cho Hyun: "I Will Request Cooperation"

On August 26, Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Hyun stated regarding the ten Koreans who had been stranded by floods in the Rasuwa region of Nepal, "They have evacuated and are waiting for rescue locally, but their situation has been confirmed as safe." The number of missing persons, initially reported as eight, has increased to a total of nine after one more individual was identified.

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun is presiding over the Overseas Korean Citizens Protection Headquarters meeting regarding the missing Korean nationals in the Nepal floods at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on August 26, 2026. Photo by mon@yna.co.kr, Yonhap News

At approximately 10:30 p.m. that day, Minister Cho urgently convened a meeting of the Overseas Korean Citizens Protection Headquarters at the annex of the Government Complex Seoul. In his opening remarks, he said, "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs headquarters and the local embassy are working closely with relevant ministries, and I ask that every effort be made for the prompt and safe search and rescue of our nationals."

The nine missing Koreans have all been identified as employees of Korea South-East Power and Doosan Enerbility who were working at a local hydroelectric power plant construction site. Minister Cho explained, "The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Nepal immediately requested the rescue of our nationals from the Nepalese government after becoming aware of the incident," and added, "The Nepalese government reported that it had mobilized the army, police, and other resources for the rescue operation." However, he also expressed concerns, saying, "There have been foreign news reports that hundreds of people are missing in this incident, so we anticipate that rescue operations will be challenging."

The government plans to urgently dispatch a rapid response team to the location on August 27, led by government representative Lim Sang-woo, who is in charge of overseas Koreans protection and consular affairs, as well as officials from the National Fire Agency and National Police Agency. Minister Cho stated, "I ask that the embassy ensure the safety of our stranded nationals until the rapid response team arrives and maintain close coordination with the local authorities," adding, "Tomorrow, I will speak by phone with the Nepalese Foreign Minister and request cooperation."

Additionally, Minister Cho remarked, "Many of our citizens will likely be spending a sleepless night with worry," and emphasized, "For the families of nationals who have either lost contact or are currently evacuating, we will communicate closely with the respective companies to keep them thoroughly informed of the developments."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.