Busan shark returns to canal after brief exit
Summary
Bukang-i returned to a canal in Busan Thursday morning, a day after officials guided the shark out of the waterway. It was seen between a floating platform near the exit and a net installed as a second barrier. The shark had first been spotted in the canal on Sept. 18, and the canal park had drawn more than 1.6 million visitors as of Sunday.
Key Facts
- Observers said Bukang-i may have entered beneath the floating platform, known as a pontoon.
- A joint team of municipal and Coast Guard officials used a net secured to a pontoon to steer the shark toward the canal exit on Wednesday.
- Bukang-i was spotted near a pier outside the canal at around 6 p.m. Wednesday, but those waters are not considered open sea.
- Visitors reported seeing the shark back in the canal at around 11 p.m. Wednesday.
- Officials made a third attempt after two earlier efforts failed and they became concerned the shark could die if water temperatures fell further.
Bukang-i the shark, which was guided out of a canal in South Korea's southeastern city of Busan after more than a month there, has returned to the waterway, Thursday. Yonhap
BUSAN — Bukang-i the shark, which was guided out of a canal in South Korea's southeastern city of Busan after more than a month there, has returned to the waterway.
The shark was seen swimming Thursday morning in a narrow space between a flat floating platform installed near the canal's exit to prevent it from coming back and a net set up as a second backstop, a day after it was successfully guided out of the canal.
Observers say the fish could have swum its way into the canal under the floating platform, known as a pontoon.
The shark -- named Bukang-i after Bukhang, Korean for North Port -- was first spotted in the canal Sept. 18. Since then, the canal park, located about 330 kilometers southeast of Seoul, has turned into a major attraction, drawing over 1.6 million visitors as of Sunday.
After two previous attempts to guide the fish to the open sea failed, officials had waited for it to exit the canal on its own. But after it didn't, the officials made a third attempt over concern it could die if water temperatures fell further.
On Wednesday, a joint team involving municipal and Coast Guard officials steered Bukang-i toward the canal's exit using a net secured to a pontoon. At around 6 p.m., the shark was spotted in waters near a pier outside the canal, although the waters there are not considered open sea.
However, some visitors had reported seeing the shark swimming back in the canal at around 11 p.m. Wednesday.
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