Busan canal shark draws over 560,000 visitors

More than 560,000 people have visited a waterfront park in Busan over the past 10 days to catch a glimpse of a 3.5-meter (11.5 foot) shark trapped in a local canal, authorities said Monday.

The shark was first spotted Sept. 18 in a narrow canal at Busan's North Port. The marine animal has drawn 568,800 visitors since Sept. 19, according to the Busan Infrastructure.

Public interest spiked dramatically during the Chuseok holiday with 483,000 visitors flocking to the waterfront park over four days: 101,000 on Thursday, 136,000 on Friday, 140,000 the following day and 106,000 on Sunday. These figures represent a fiftyfold increase compared to the park's usual daily average of about 2,000 visitors during holidays.

Initially, local maritime police and authorities tried to drive the shark away. The animal, however, refused to leave the channel, prompting officials to suspend their operations.

As the shark remained trapped in the waterway through the end of the Chuseok holiday, relevant authorities were scheduled to hold a meeting Monday to discuss rescue plans.

Yonhap