Not spotted for four days

National Institute of Fisheries Science puts standby team on alert

Rescue workers use a large net to attempt to capture the shark known as Bukang-i at Busan's Bukhang Waterfront Park. [Newsis]
Rescue workers use a large net to attempt to capture the shark known as Bukang-i at Busan's Bukhang Waterfront Park. [Newsis]

Bukang-i, the shark that spent more than a month in the artificial waterway of Busan's Bukhang Waterfront Park before being guided out to sea, has not been spotted for four consecutive days.

Authorities said Friday they believe Bukang-i may be ranging farther out into open water and have suspended daily monitoring operations. The National Institute of Fisheries Science has formed a standby team to respond to any public sightings.

The institute had been conducting daily monitoring around the Bukhang area to track the shark's location and health. It halted on-site monitoring Friday, according to officials.

The institute has shifted to an on-call monitoring system, assembling a standby team for that purpose.

Bukang-i left the waterfront park's waterway on Oct. 21 after authorities guided it toward open water. The shark was initially spotted in the waters off Pier 1, near the waterway, before being observed off the International Ferry Terminal — about 2 kilometers away — beginning Saturday.

Since Tuesday, however, Bukang-i has not appeared in any monitoring sweeps. Authorities expanded their search range to include Pier 5 and surrounding areas but were unable to locate the shark.

The last public tip came in on Tuesday, and no further reports have been received since.

Experts say this is a sign that Bukang-i, having left the narrow, shallow waterway, is now diving deep and adapting to its new environment in the wider, deeper sea.

"The probability of spotting Bukang-i in the waters off Bukhang has become very low, as the shark's range has expanded," an institute official said.

Bukang-i was first spotted in the waterfront park's waterway on Sept. 18 and remained there for more than a month. During that period, about 1.6 million people visited Busan's Bukhang area to catch a glimpse of the shark.


jshan@heraldcorp.com