A helicopter carrying eight South Koreans and six foreigners is missing in Peru.

The Peruvian government notified the South Korean embassy in Lima that communication with the helicopter was lost just an hour after it took off from a southeastern region of Peru toward Cusco around 5:30 p.m. Thursday, local time.

The eight missing South Koreans were confirmed to be employees of the Korea Water Resources Corporation, Samsung C&T Corporation and other firms. They were visiting Peru to inspect a potential site to build a hydroelectric power plant in the northern region of Masuco.

Local police and military swiftly dispatched search and rescue teams to a region near Marcapata which is located at the intersection of the high reaches of the Andes and the Amazon after a signal presumed to come from the helicopter was detected.

However, search and rescue officers are facing difficulty due to inclement weather conditions and the rugged terrain.