Busan crowds join effort to guide beloved shark safely back to sea
Coast Guard patrol boats, drones and spectators tried to help steer Bukang-i, a copper shark stranded in Busan’s North Port waterway, toward open waters.
A patrol boat sprays high-pressure water in a waterway in Busan's North Port Waterfront Park as crews work to guide a shark toward the open sea on Sept. 29.LEE EUN-JI
BUSAN — A copper shark that has captivated crowds at Busan's North Port Waterfront Park was nudged toward the open sea in a failed rescue attempt to lure the city's favorite apex predator to freedom on Tuesday.
“Here! Here!” people gathered around the park's waterway shouted in unison to the nearby patrol boats at 11:20 a.m. on Tuesday, when the rescue operation started.
When the shark surfaced, three patrol boats followed its course and sprayed high-pressure water. Coast Guard officers aboard the boats asked citizens over loudspeakers to “shout when you see Bukang-i,” using the pet name people gave to the shark.
The first of the three boats sprayed high-pressure water from behind the shark, while the second sprayed water diagonally from the side to control its direction. The third boat sprayed water from the center to prevent the shark from turning back. The strategy was to guide the shark toward the open sea using the noise and foam generated by the high-pressure water.
“In 2004, two vessels were used to rescue a great white shark in the United States, but we deployed three because the North Port waterway is wide,” said Ji Hwan-sung, a researcher at the National Institute of Fisheries Science. “It is important to guide it all the way into the open sea in a single attempt, but the rescue is proving more difficult than expected.”
The rescue operation was halted at 12:20 p.m., one hour after it began. It resumed at 1:30 p.m. after preparations were made, and continued until 3:30 p.m.
The shark did not leave, and the National Institute of Fisheries Science plans to make another rescue attempt on Friday using a specially made net. The strategy is to gradually block the shark's escape route with the net while guiding it toward the open sea.
The shark was first spotted Sept. 18 in a canal at North Port Waterfront Park in Dong District, Busan. Busan authorities said they planned to guide it out to the open sea if the shark remained after the Chuseok holidays, which ended Sunday.
Coast Guard officers and officials from the National Institute of Fisheries Science discuss plans to guide a shark from a waterway in Busan’s North Port Waterfront Park and toward the open sea on Sept. 29.LEE EUN-JI
The biggest concern during the rescue was that the shark might collide with the vessels. If the shark approaches the patrol boat, it could hit the propeller. The rescue team immediately shut down their engines when the shark approached the boats.
Seven drones flew overhead to track the shark's location, while the team exchanged information by radio with firefighters stationed on bridges to monitor its movements.
Citizens also continued to visit the waterfront park on Tuesday.
“I hurried over after hearing that they were going to guide it out today,” said Kim Ji-an, who lives in Jeonpo-dong, Busan. “Seeing that it hasn't left easily, I guess it doesn't want to leave the North Port.”
Children were also part of the eager crowd. Min Seo-hong, a 12-year-old who came to Busan from Seoul for the recent Chuseok holidays, persuaded her mother to come with her.
People watch a shark swim in a waterway in Busan's North Port Waterfront Park on Sept. 29.YONHAP
“I heard about Bukang-i on Instagram, and unlike sharks at aquariums, it is special because it came here naturally,” Min said. “I thought I had to come today because I might never see it again if they send it back to the sea. Seeing it in person was scary, like in the movie ‘Jaws,’ and it was much bigger than I expected. But I'm sad to hear that it's going back to the sea.”
The rescue operation is being expedited due to concerns about the shark's health. It has not been seen hunting since it entered the North Port waterway.
The waterway is also 4.5 meters (14.76 feet) deep at high tide but only 1.5 to 2.5 meters deep at low tide. Experts say the conditions are unsuitable for the long-term stay of a copper shark, which inhabits waters as deep as 100 meters.
About 570,000 visitors came to North Port Waterfront Park between Sept. 19 and Sunday, according to the Busan Infrastructure Corporation. The figure translates to an average of 63,200 visitors per day and about 32 times the usual number.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
