320,000 Flock to Busan North Port Over Three-Day Chuseok Holiday to See Shark Bukangi

[Financial News] A steady stream of visitors came to see Bukangi, the shark in the artificial waterway at North Port, bringing the number of visitors to Busan North Port Waterfront Park in Dong-gu, Busan, to 320,000 over the three-day Chuseok holiday. More than 80,000 people visited on the 26th, the third day of the holiday, despite the rain.
According to Busan Facilities Corporation, the cumulative number of visitors to the waterfront park stood at 83,000 as of 6 p.m. on the 26th, the previous day. Although the figure was lower than the 101,000 visitors recorded on the first day of the holiday, the 24th, and the 136,000 who came on Chuseok Day, the number was still substantial considering that 17.3 millimeters of rain fell in Busan that day.
That was more than the 67,000 visitors who came to the 2026 World Island Exhibition Yeosu Korea on Chuseok Day, setting the exhibition's highest daily attendance since its opening.
Including the 320,000 visitors over the three-day holiday, the total number of people who visited North Port from the 19th through the 26th, since the corporation began compiling the figures, reached 405,800.
Busan Facilities Corporation restricted access to the waterfront park at 6 p.m. on the 26th and encouraged visitors to return home.
Although it had been raining since the morning, crowds gathered to see Bukangi, a shark approximately 3 meters long. The Busan Coast Guard tried to guide the shark out of the waterway by sending patrol boats through the artificial waterway at North Port several times, but Bukangi remained there.
Citizens leaning against the railings along the waterway let out exclamations whenever Bukangi surfaced and swam.
Busan Metropolitan City and the National Institute of Fisheries Science (NIFS) said they would discuss rescue measures if Bukangi remained in the waterway after the holiday ended.
After the news spread, some citizens questioned the need to force the shark out, saying it appeared to be staying because the environment was favorable rather than because it could not find the exit.

[email protected] Lee Hwan-joo Reporter