South Korean families urge Nepal helicopter rescue as flood toll mounts

Families of South Korean employees unaccounted for in a catastrophic flash flood in Nepal are calling for immediate helicopter-assisted rescue operations, expressing concern that critical time is being lost in recovery efforts. The disaster struck a hydropower project where Doosan Enerbility, a major South Korean energy company, has operations, when a glacier-triggered flood swept through the area with devastating force.

Rescue teams have faced significant obstacles in accessing the affected region, with mountainous terrain and challenging weather conditions complicating ground-based search and recovery operations. More than 48 hours after the initial flood, rescue workers continue efforts to locate and retrieve the missing workers, though their accessibility to the disaster zone remains severely limited.

The families have escalated appeals to both Nepali authorities and South Korean officials to deploy helicopters for aerial reconnaissance and emergency evacuation assistance. They argue that traditional ground rescue methods are proving insufficient given the scale of the disaster and the urgency of locating survivors in what experts warn is a narrowing window for successful rescue operations.

Nepal's hydropower sector has seen multiple disasters in recent years, with remote project sites and unpredictable mountain weather creating particular hazards for workers. Authorities have not yet released confirmed figures on total casualties or the exact number of those still missing in the incident.