Busan launches rescue effort to free canal-trapped shark Bukang-i

A 3.5-metre shark dubbed Bukang-i has been trapped in a canal at a waterfront park in Busan’s North Port since Sept. 18, drawing 568,800 visitors in the days that followed. The Busan city government convened a meeting on Monday and approved a rescue plan that will employ vessels and water pumps to coax the shark out of the channel starting 10 a.m. Tuesday. Should the pumps prove ineffective, officials will use a custom-sized net to guide the animal to the open sea.

The National Institute of Fisheries Science reported that the shark’s activity and breathing are stable. Visitor numbers spiked dramatically over the Chuseok holiday, reaching up to 140,000 in a single day, far above the park’s usual holiday average of about 2,000. Earlier attempts by maritime police to drive the shark away were halted when the animal refused to leave the waterway.