Trudeau thanks Korean fire relief team dispatched to Canada

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday thanked the Korea Disaster Relief Team (KDRT) that was dispatched to North America a month ago to join the international teams in fighting off the wildfire.

Justin Trudeau's Twitter account. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday thanked the Korea Disaster Relief Team (KDRT) that was dispatched to North America a month ago to join the international teams in fighting off the wildfire.

“So I just want to say thank you so much for being away from your families for these past weeks for coming to this other side of the world, to be there to help our communities and our people,” Trudeau said in a video posted on his Twitter.

“We will never forget it. Thank you for being there,” he added.

The video shows Trudeau in front of a plane where the KDRT departed from Canada.

Retweeting Trudeau’s post, President Yoon Suk Yeol, on his own Twitter account, said he “greatly [appreciates]” the Canadian prime minister’s surprise visit.

“Through the joint operations of [Korean and Canadian] firefighters, we have reached another milestone in our long-standing friendship,” Yoon said.

President Yoon Suk Yeol's Twitter account. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

A total of 151 KDRT members, including firefighters, emergency workers and medical personnel, arrived in Canada on July 2 and started operations in Lebel-sur-Quévillon in Quebec.

According to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fires Centre, a total of 5,082 fires broke out nationwide this year, burning more than 13 million hectares as of Tuesday.

In February, the KDRT was also dispatched to Turkey to help search for attending survivors and victims of one of its worst earthquakes.

BY LEE HO-JEONG [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]