What did President Lee Jae Myung do to respond to the Nepal flood crisis involving missing Koreans?

Lee canceled a scheduled afternoon meeting with his key aides and instead planned an emergency assessment meeting on Thursday. The presidential office said he was focusing on measures to ensure the safety of Korean workers missing in Nepal.

How many Koreans were missing in Nepal after the floods, and who were they?

Nine Koreans remained unaccounted for as of Thursday. They were all employees of Korean firms operating in Nepal.

What other steps was the South Korean government taking after the Nepal floods?

The government was preparing to send an emergency response team to support the search for the missing Koreans. Lee had also ordered officials the day before to do everything possible and mobilize all available resources.

Lee to hold emergency meeting to discuss rescue efforts for Koreans missing in Nepal flood

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Summary

President Lee Jae Myung was set to hold an emergency meeting Thursday in Seoul to discuss rescue measures for Korean workers missing in Nepal’s floods. The presidential office said Lee canceled a scheduled meeting with key aides and also postponed a lunch meeting with ruling party lawmakers. The government was preparing to send an emergency response team as nine Koreans remained unaccounted for. Lee had ordered officials the previous day to use all available resources to search for them.

Key Facts

As of Thursday, nine Koreans were still missing, and all were employees of Korean firms operating in Nepal.
Catastrophic floods struck China and Nepal on Wednesday, with more than 150 people confirmed dead and hundreds still missing.
The government was preparing to dispatch an emergency response team to help search for the missing nationals.
Cheong Wa Dae postponed Lee Jae Myung’s lunch meeting with ruling party lawmakers, which had been scheduled for Friday.

By Yonhap

Published Aug 27, 2026 11:51 am KST

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Tuesday. Joint Press Corps

President Lee Jae Myung was set to hold an emergency meeting Thursday to discuss measures to ensure the safety of many Korean workers hit by massive floods in Nepal, the presidential office said.

Lee has called off a scheduled meeting with his key aides in the afternoon and will instead hold the emergency assessment meeting, according to presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung.

Catastrophic floods struck China and Nepal on Wednesday, with over 150 people confirmed dead so far and hundreds still missing.

As of Thursday, nine Koreans — all employees of Korean firms operating in Nepal — remained unaccounted for, and the government was preparing to dispatch an emergency response team to aid in the search for the nationals.

The previous day, Lee ordered the government to do everything possible to search for the missing Koreans by mobilizing all available resources.

In line with such efforts, Cheong Wa Dae has also postponed Lee's lunch meeting with ruling party lawmakers, which was scheduled for Friday.

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