The second batch of the Korea Disaster Relief Team (KDRT), dispatched to the site of the severe floods in Nepal, is scheduled to be deployed for reconstruction and recovery activities.

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Park Doo-soon said during a regular briefing today (the 10th) that "the second batch of the KDRT is composed of a reconstruction and recovery team along with a small number of search and rescue personnel, and is scheduled to arrive in Nepal tomorrow via a KC-330 military transport aircraft."

Spokesperson Park stated, "The second batch of the KDRT consists of a total of 8 members, including officials from the Foreign Ministry, firefighters, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), and medical personnel, and will operate locally in Nepal for 7 days."

Previously, the first batch of the KDRT was dispatched with 44 members on the 2nd and deployed for search and rescue operations.

The shift in the composition of the KDRT appears to have been influenced by factors such as the Nepalese authorities shifting their focus from search and rescue to recovery and reconstruction as considerable time has passed since the massive floods occurred on the 26th of last month.

Spokesperson Park said, "The Nepalese government's stance is to transition operations from search and rescue to reconstruction and recovery, and it has requested our government's support for the reconstruction and recovery of the affected areas."

Families of three South Korean employees of Korea South-East Power who went missing in the floods held a press conference in Kathmandu, Nepal, the previous day, urging the South Korean government, including the KDRT, to continue the search.

The Blue House stated that President Lee Jae-myung instructed officials to "fully listen to and respect the wishes of the families and review necessary measures so that their wishes can be reflected as much as possible."

Spokesperson Park said, "It is hard to imagine how distressed and anxious the families of the missing persons are as they spend each day, and the government is also taking this matter with the utmost seriousness."

He added, "The families may feel that the search conducted so far has not been sufficient, and the government fully understands those feelings," and "The government plans to fully listen to the opinions of the families and review necessary measures in a direction that respects and reflects their wishes as much as possible."

(Photo: Yonhap News)