Cheong Wa Dae on the 27th canceled all on-site schedules, including a luncheon inviting lawmakers of the Democratic Party of Korea, to respond to the "Nepal flood situation." With the Nepal floods having left more than 160 people dead so far and nine of our citizens missing, the move is aimed at focusing on handling the aftermath and searching for the missing.
Kang Yu-jung, senior presidential spokesperson, said that day, "President Lee Jae-myung will postpone the chief secretaries' meeting he was to chair on the Cheong Wa Dae grounds and will chair an emergency meeting to review the damage to our citizens related to the Nepal floods." She also said, "In light of the situation in which we are making every effort to ensure the safety of our citizens, the luncheon scheduled for tomorrow inviting members of the Democratic Party of Korea will also be postponed."
Earlier, Cheong Wa Dae had said the president would invite all Democratic Party lawmakers to the state guesthouse at Cheong Wa Dae for a luncheon on the 28th. After having a dinner with lawmakers Kim Min-seok and Song Young-gil, who had contested party leadership with Kim Min-seok right after the Aug. 17 party convention, and inviting the new leadership to Cheong Wa Dae, the event was intended to promote unity between the administration and the party.
However, as the situation in Nepal worsened, Cheong Wa Dae was said to have asked the Democratic Party that morning to postpone the luncheon. The chief secretaries' meeting chaired by the president, held every Thursday on the Cheong Wa Dae grounds, was also postponed. Instead, Cheong Wa Dae said the president will chair an emergency meeting to review the damage situation for our citizens related to the Nepal floods.
Meanwhile, the government on the day urgently dispatched a rapid response team of 11 people from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, fire and rescue, police, and other agencies to the site. The team is scheduled to depart Incheon Airport on a commercial flight, transit through Hong Kong, and arrive in Kathmandu, Nepal. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said they will support the search and rescue operations for missing Koreans on the ground.
According to the relevant authorities, at least 160 people have died and a total of 403 people, including 341 foreigners, are missing due to floods that occurred on the 26th (local time) in the Himalayan mountain region around Bagmati Province in north-central Nepal. Nine Koreans affiliated with Korea South-East Power Co. (KOEN) and Doosan Enerbility, who were participating in the construction of a local hydropower plant, have also lost contact. Another 10 Koreans are isolated but are believed to be safe.
After receiving a report the previous day on the situation of the missing Koreans, the president said, "Mobilize all available means and make every effort to search for and rescue the missing," and instructed, "Put the lives and safety of our citizens first." He also said, "Work closely with the Nepal government and local authorities, and make every effort to support the families of the missing and to ensure the safety of our citizens staying on the ground."