Busan shark returns to canal after brief exit

Bukang-i returned to a canal in Busan Thursday morning, a day after officials guided the shark out of the waterway. It was seen between a floating platform near the exit and a net installed as a second barrier. The shark had first been spotted in the canal on Sept. 18, and the canal park had drawn more than 1.6 million visitors as of Sunday.

Observers said Bukang-i may have entered beneath the floating platform, known as a pontoon.

A joint team of municipal and Coast Guard officials used a net secured to a pontoon to steer the shark toward the canal exit on Wednesday.

Bukang-i was spotted near a pier outside the canal at around 6 p.m. Wednesday, but those waters are not considered open sea.

Visitors reported seeing the shark back in the canal at around 11 p.m. Wednesday.

Officials made a third attempt after two earlier efforts failed and they became concerned the shark could die if water temperatures fell further.

Published Oct 22, 2026 10:16 am KST

Bukang-i the shark, which was guided out of a canal in South Korea's southeastern city of Busan after more than a month there, has returned to the waterway, Thursday. Yonhap

BUSAN — Bukang-i the shark, which was guided out of a canal in South Korea's southeastern city of Busan after more than a month there, has returned to the waterway.

The shark was seen swimming Thursday morning in a narrow space between a flat floating platform installed near the canal's exit to prevent it from coming back and a net set up as a second backstop, a day after it was successfully guided out of the canal.

Observers say the fish could have swum its way into the canal under the floating platform, known as a pontoon.

The shark -- named Bukang-i after Bukhang, Korean for North Port -- was first spotted in the canal Sept. 18. Since then, the canal park, located about 330 kilometers southeast of Seoul, has turned into a major attraction, drawing over 1.6 million visitors as of Sunday.

After two previous attempts to guide the fish to the open sea failed, officials had waited for it to exit the canal on its own. But after it didn't, the officials made a third attempt over concern it could die if water temperatures fell further.

On Wednesday, a joint team involving municipal and Coast Guard officials steered Bukang-i toward the canal's exit using a net secured to a pontoon. At around 6 p.m., the shark was spotted in waters near a pier outside the canal, although the waters there are not considered open sea.

However, some visitors had reported seeing the shark swimming back in the canal at around 11 p.m. Wednesday.

周四上午，在工作人员将其从运河中引出一天后，布康伊鲨鱼再次出现在釜山的一条运河中。人们看到它位于出口附近的一个浮动平台和第二道屏障——渔网之间。这条鲨鱼最早于9月18日被发现出现在运河中，截至周日，该运河公园已吸引了超过160万游客。

观察人士称，布康伊可能从被称为浮桥的浮动平台下方进入。

周三，市政官员和海岸警卫队官员组成的联合小组使用固定在浮筒上的渔网，将鲨鱼引向运河出口。

周三下午 6 点左右，有人在运河外的一个码头附近发现了 Bukang-i，但这些水域不属于公海。

游客报告称，周三晚上 11 点左右，他们再次在运河中看到了鲨鱼。

前两次尝试均告失败后，官员们进行了第三次尝试，他们担心如果水温进一步下降，鲨鱼可能会死亡。

发布于2026年10月22日上午10:16（韩国标准时间）

在韩国东南部城市釜山的一条运河中待了一个多月后被引导出来的鲨鱼“布康伊”（Bukang-i）于周四被放回了运河。（韩联社）

釜山——在韩国东南部城市釜山的一条运河中待了一个多月后被引导出来的鲨鱼“布康伊”已经返回了这条水道。

周四早上，有人看到这条鲨鱼在运河出口附近安装的扁平浮动平台和作为第二道防线设置的网之间的狭窄空间里游动。此前一天，这条鲨鱼已被成功引导出运河。

观察人士称，这条鱼可能是从被称为浮桥的浮动平台下方游进运河的。

这条鲨鱼——以韩语“北港”（Bukhang）命名，取名为“北港伊”（Bukang-i）——于9月18日首次在运河中被发现。自那以后，位于首尔东南约330公里处的运河公园已成为一个主要景点，截至周日已吸引了超过160万游客。

此前两次引导鱼儿游向大海的尝试均告失败后，官员们一直等待它自行游出运河。但它并未自行游出，出于对水温进一步下降可能导致其死亡的担忧，官员们进行了第三次尝试。

周三，由市政官员和海岸警卫队官员组成的联合小组利用固定在浮桥上的渔网，将“布康伊”号鲨鱼引向运河出口。下午6点左右，有人在运河外码头附近的水域发现了这条鲨鱼，尽管那里的水域并不属于公海。

然而，一些游客报告说，他们在周三晚上 11 点左右看到鲨鱼游回了运河。