In brief
Busan’s infamous dusky shark, dubbed Bukangi, remains trapped in a canal despite months of rescue efforts and has become an unlikely tourist attraction. Rescue workers used nets to guide the three‑metre long shark into harbor, only for it to slip back into the waterway after breaking a barrier. The authorities have reinforced nets, but the shark keeps circling close to the canal mouth. While the public views the struggle, experts warn about the creature’s health, noting potential injuries and the impact of increasingly warm waters. The incident spotlighted both tourism gains and environmental concerns in South Korea.
A famed dusky shark in South Korea is continuing to linger near a canal that it was ejected from on Wednesday.
The shark, nicknamed Bukangi, became an unlikely sensation after it was spotted swimming in a canal in the southeastern port city of Busan last month.
For weeks, rescuers tried in vain to get her back to the open sea, using nets to guide it out.
Authorities fortified barriers to stop her from returning, yet she has yet to swim out into the open sea and keeps circling back to the canal mouth.
Bukangi was guided out of the canal during a livestreamed operation on Wednesday.
In that operation, rescue workers took more than eight hours to delicately guide the three‑metre (10ft) shark with a net toward open water in a harbour.
Hundreds of adoring fans gathered at the park overlooking the canal, cheering and waving goodbye to the shark, only for her to break through a barrier the following morning and swim back into the waterway.
Since she’s been in the canal, Bukangi has attracted more than 1.6 million visitors, boosting tourism and becoming an unofficial mascot for the city.
However, concerns about her health have risen—she appears injured, has a bloodied snout, and was not eating, making her vulnerable to dropping water temperatures.
Experts note that warmer waters may continue to draw sharks to Busan, raising questions about future interactions between marine life and human activity in the region.
