Authorities are mounting a third operation to guide "Bukang-i," a shark that has lingered for more than a month in an artificial channel at a waterfront park in Busan's North Port, back out to sea.
The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said on the 20th that it will carry out the third attempt to guide the shark into open water on Oct. 21, working jointly with the city of Busan, the National Marine Biodiversity Institute of Korea and other agencies. Officials plan to begin the operation in earnest on the afternoon of the 21st.
The ministry and nine other agencies reached the decision and drew up a detailed action plan at a meeting held near Busan Station on the same day.
As in the second attempt, the agencies will again use nets. This time, however, they plan to fasten the netting to a pontoon, a floating platform used for work on the water, and move it slowly toward the sea to drive the shark out.
Personnel will be stationed on the pontoon to block the shark from approaching. Because a gap can open between the channel floor and the net as the water deepens near the channel mouth, the agencies aim to install a second net inside the first to prevent the shark from doubling back.
Starting in the afternoon, the agencies will conduct preparatory work including surveys of the underwater terrain and obstacles at the entrance to the park's channel, using underwater drones and other equipment.
The ministry said it will minimize stress on the shark while giving priority to the safety of the workers and park visitors.
Bukang-i is a 3-meter dusky shark first spotted in the waterfront park's artificial channel on Sept. 18.
Crowds gathering to catch a glimpse of the wild shark have turned Bukang-i into a Busan attraction. Cumulative visits to the park have topped 1.6 million since the shark was first found.
On Sept. 29, the agencies tried to push the shark out to sea with jets of water from a pump, but failed. On Oct. 2, they dragged a net that drove the shark to a point 100 meters from the channel mouth, only for it to swim back over the net the following day.