Shark stranded in South Korean canal goes viral, draws over half a million visitors

A huge grey shark named Bukangi has become an honorary mascot in South Korea’s biggest port city while slowly circling a canal where the animal has been trapped for nearly two weeks.

About 600,000 visitors have flocked to the North Port to see the shark since counting began on Sept.19, including nearly half a million during last week’s Chuseok holiday break, the Korean Thanksgiving, city officials said.

On Tuesday, Busan ‌declared the shark ‌an honorary public relations ambassador for ⁠the city after a poll on the city's official Instagram ‌account received 91% approval from about 8,000 participants.

"Bukangi has naturally become a new part of Busan’s story with the interest and love of the city’s people,” Busan Mayor Chun Jae-soo said in a statement.

Officials in Busan have embraced the attention brought by the shark, which has drawn thousands of tourists and now shares the Korean name for the city’s North Port, where it was first spotted on Sept.18.

During the four-day Chuseok holiday ​last ‌weekend, about 480,000 people visited the waterfront park where the shark ‌was stranded, compared with the park's usual daily average of around 2,000 visitors on weekends, according to a Busan city statement and media reports.

The shark, which officials say is about 3.5 metres (11.5 feet) long, has become a social media sensation, but guiding it back to open water has proved tricky.

This aerial view photo taken on Tuesday shows South Korean Coast Guard boats spraying water to guide a 3.5-metre shark back to the sea after it became trapped in an artificial waterway in the southeastern port city of Busan. Agence France-Presse

Officials on Tuesday deployed five vessels to the waterway. They sprayed streams of water from tanks while attempting to herd the shark toward the open sea, an effort closely watched by huge crowds on site and broadcast on YouTube.

The crews gave up hours later after the shark repeatedly swam past or dived to avoid the boats, remaining inside the canal.

Another bid to free the shark on Friday

Kim Won-ho, a Busan City official, said authorities will make another attempt as early as Friday to free the shark, which experts say is important for its safety and long-term health.

The state-run National Institute of Fisheries Science is producing a specially designed net 50 metres (54 yards) long or bigger to be stretched across the waterway by boat to channel the shark toward the exit. Another boat will spray water from behind to drive the shark in that direction, according to tentative plans, he said.

"We’re adapting our response to the situation on site,” Kim said.

Officials have not detected any clear signs that the shark’s health has deteriorated while stuck in the canal, but they still consider its release to the open sea as crucial, he said.

Other animal escapades have gripped South Korea in the past.

Earlier this year, ⁠a wolf that escaped from its enclosure at a ​South Korean zoo spawned a cryptocurrency meme coin and even prompted a message of concern from the country's president.

Agencies