On Wednesday, a trainer at the Shamu Stadium in Sea World was killed by a killer whale in front of a crowd for a live performance. Audience members were immediately shuffled out of the stadium and the park was closed down. Dawn Brancheau, the trainer, was said to be be one of the park's most experienced trainers. Brancheau was "snatched by the whale in front of a stadium of horrified onlookers, thrashed and ultimately held under water to drown."
The park will undergo investigations by two federal agencies. Sea World has states that it will review its safety policies and determine whether Tillikum, the 12,000-pound bull killer whale, will be used in shows and publicly displayed (abc.com). Sea World has currently stopped all Shamu shows at the Orlando location and at sister parks in San Antinio and San Diego.
This particular whale, Tillikum, has been involved in two previous incidents. Tilikum was part of a group of three whales that were blamed for killing a trainer who lost her balance and fell in the pool with them in 1991 at Sealand of the Pacific in Victoria, British Columbia. CBS 4 states that "Tilikum was also involved in a 1999 death, when the body of a man who had sneaked by Orlando Sea World security was found draped over him. The man either jumped, fell or was pulled into the frigid water and died of hypothermia, though he was also bruised and scratched by Tilikum." Since the incidents, Sea World had banned trainers to swim with Tillikum. The whale was only given commands from trainers from the sides of the tank during public shows.
Steve McCulloch, founder and program manager at the Marine Mammal Research and Conservation Program at Harbor Branch/Florida Atlantic University, said the whale may have been playing, but it is too early to tell (CBS 4). "I wouldn't jump to conclusions," he said. "These are very large powerful marine mammals. They exhibit this type of behavior in the wild.
Sources:
Goldman, Russell. "SeaWorld Won't Euthanize Whale, Feds Investigate Trainer Death." ABC World News. 25 Feb. 2010. Web.
"Official: SeaWorld Killer Whale Had Killed Before." CBS 4. 24 Feb. 2010. Web.
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