A man in his 70s, Mr. Oh, who had been suffering from pulmonary arterial hypertension, fell into the Han River while taking a walk. Fortunately, he was rescued, and afterward, his chronic illness vanished as if it had been completely washed away. The rumor spread quickly. The trouble began when Mr. Oh posted about the incident on his blog, where he had been documenting his battle with the disease. He boldly claimed, “There was some kind of water spirit. It couldn’t take my life, so it just took my disease instead. It was like a Western beauty!” This led to other male patients, who were also sick but physically stronger, starting to visit the Han River at night. On average, only two out of five returned. Although Mr. Oh deleted the post, screenshots circulated widely. Content related to the water spirit continued to be produced. A certain YouTuber even demonstrated that just by drinking a large amount of water from the Han River, one could expect to see some effects. But that wasn’t all he discovered. As an environmental engineering major, he found that the water from the Han River contained a significant amount of erectile dysfunction medication. The drugs that had been helping blood flow to men’s penises at entertainment venues ended up in the Han River via the users’ urine and sewage, helping other men in turn. Although the public was shocked, the number of men who “accidentally” died in the Han River did not decrease. Every Friday night, you could see it from the bridge crossing the Han River. If you looked down, you would only see heads of men. Their ages varied, similarly, their hair color and size were all different, rolling and bumping against each other like pebbles along the riverbank, swaying precariously.
* Based on the news report by Baek Chang-eun, “Han River-Viagra Mystery: The Truth Is This,” TBS News, June 7, 2021.
(https://tbs.seoul.kr/news/newsView.do?typ_800=6&idx_800=3438612&seq_800=20431189)