Shark ‘Bukkangi’ has stayed in North Port for a month... Visitors top 1.5 million

[Financial News] Thanks to a single shark, more than 1.5 million people have visited Busan North Port Waterfront Park in just one month. Bukkangi, which has settled in an artificial channel, has yet to head out to sea despite two rescue operations by the coast guard. A scrape was found on its snout, but it does not appear to have any significant health problems so far.
According to Busan City and other relevant authorities on the 18th, Bukkangi, which first appeared on the 18th of last month, was still circling inside the channel exactly one month later. The authorities have halted rescue operations and are monitoring its condition while waiting for it to return to the sea on its own.
Based on the way it swims and other observations, the authorities believe Bukkangi has no major health problems. They said a wound that appeared to have been scraped against a hard object was found on its snout, but there are no signs that it has worsened or spread. Commenting on the wound, Ji Hwan-seong, a researcher at the National Institute of Fisheries Science, said, “Sharks have a strong ability to recover, even when they sustain skin damage. Wounds can appear and heal repeatedly, but the situation is not considered cause for concern yet.”
The remaining variable is water temperature. The channel’s water temperature was recently measured at around 22°C. Experts predict that Bukkangi will have difficulty enduring conditions in the channel if the temperature falls to around 18°C or lower. The authorities hope that as autumn deepens and the water cools, it will head out on its own in search of the relatively warmer open sea.
Bukkangi was first reported on the 18th of last month. When a 3-meter-long shark appeared in the waterfront park’s channel, which connects to the sea, the coast guard immediately went to the scene and tried to drive it away, but the shark did not leave the channel. The National Institute of Fisheries Science believes it is a Mutae shark, a member of the requiem shark family. Mutae sharks are found in subtropical waters of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans, including off the Korean coast, and are classified as a species that may pose a risk of attacking people. NIFS says reports of Mutae shark sightings along South Korea’s coast have become increasingly frequent amid recent rises in water temperatures, and believes the shark may have entered the North Port channel in pursuit of prey.
The public reacted differently. Starting the next day, crowds flocked to see the large shark up close, and it quickly became a local attraction, even earning the nickname “Bukkangi,” a blend of North Port and shark.
Rescue attempts repeatedly fell short. On the 29th of last month, authorities tried to drive the shark away by spraying streams of water from a boat and a water pump. On the 2nd, they brought in a specially made large net. During the second operation, they managed to push it to a point just 100 meters from the channel exit, but the next day Bukkangi swam over the net and back inside.
[email protected] Jeong Gyeong-su Reporter