Over 560,000 visitors flock to Busan to see canal-trapped shark Bukang-i

Published Sep 28, 2026 11:28 am KST

Visitors watch Bukang-i, a shark trapped in a narrow canal, swim at a waterfront park in the southeastern city of Busan, Sunday. Yonhap

BUSAN — More than 560,000 people have visited a waterfront park in the southeastern city of Busan over the past 10 days to catch a glimpse of a 3.5-meter shark trapped in a local canal, authorities said Monday.

The shark was first spotted Sept. 18 in a narrow canal at Busan's North Port. Affectionately named Bukang-i — a combination of Bukhang, or North Port, and the Korean suffix "i" — the marine animal has drawn 568,800 visitors since Sept. 19, according to the Busan Infrastructure Corp.

Public interest spiked dramatically during the Chuseok holiday, the Korean equivalent of Thanksgiving, with 483,000 visitors flocking to the waterfront park over four days: 101,000 on Thursday, 136,000 on Friday, 140,000 the following day and 106,000 on Sunday. These figures represent a fiftyfold increase compared with the park's usual daily average of about 2,000 visitors during holidays.

Initially, local maritime police and authorities tried to drive the shark away. The animal, however, refused to leave the channel, prompting officials to suspend their operations.

As Bukang-i remained trapped in the waterway through the end of the Chuseok holiday, relevant authorities were scheduled to hold a meeting Monday to discuss rescue plans.

发布于2026年9月28日上午11:28（韩国标准时间）

周日，在韩国东南部城市釜山的一个海滨公园，游客们观看被困在狭窄运河中的鲨鱼“布康伊”游泳。（韩联社）

釜山——当局周一表示，过去 10 天里，超过 56 万人涌入釜山东南部的一个海滨公园，只为一睹被困在当地运河中的 3.5 米长鲨鱼的真容。

这条鲨鱼于9月18日首次在釜山北港的一条狭窄运河中被发现。据釜山基础设施公司称，自9月19日以来，这条被亲切地称为“北港伊”（Bukang-i，由“北港”（Bukhang）和韩语后缀“i”组合而成）的海洋动物已经吸引了568,800名游客。

在韩国中秋节（相当于感恩节）期间，公众对滨海公园的兴趣激增，四天内共有48.3万游客涌入：周四10.1万人，周五13.6万人，周五14万人，周日10.6万人。与公园节假日期间通常每天约2000名游客相比，这一数字增长了50倍。

起初，当地海事警察和有关部门试图驱赶鲨鱼。然而，这条鲨鱼拒绝离开航道，迫使官员们暂停了行动。

由于布康伊在中秋节假期结束前仍被困在水道中，有关部门计划于周一召开会议讨论救援计划。