Trainer drowned by orca at SeaWorld

[Cetacea]

Trainer dies after 'attack from killer whale at SeaWorld'


A woman trainer was dragged underwater and drowned by a killer whale in front of horrified spectators at SeaWorld in Florida yesterday.

The 40-year-old victim was reportedly grabbed by the waist and shaken violently by the rogue whale at the Orlando theme park - one of the biggest attractions for British holidaymakers in the US.

The attack happened at lunchtime yesterday when about 50 tourists stayed behind after a show to watch trainers feed the orcas.

There were conflicting reports over how the woman, said to be one of SeaWorld’s most experienced trainers – was killed.

Police said she ‘apparently slipped or fell’ into the whales’ tank.

But eye-witnesses described a much more horrific scene.

Park guest Victoria Biniak said she was watching as the trainers talked about the show to a crowd of people when one of them was suddenly swept away in the whale’s mouth.

The whale 'took off really fast in the tank and then he came back around to the glass, shot up in the air, grabbed the trainer by the waist and started shaking her violently, and one of her shoes flew off,’ she said.

She said the trainer was talking about Tillikum, one of the stars of the Shamu show.

‘We walked down and there was a lot of people there. There was a trainer standing by the window talking about the whale. People were asking questions like how much does he weigh and things like that.

More here

Let's see them try and pass this off as an accident... *shakes head* I must say I am quite shocked, it seems one of the most violent displays on record.

Another article
here

[lovelyjolie]

'Serial' Killer Whale Kills Again at SeaWorld Orlando

MarineBio was actually mentioned in the above article:

"The orca, or "killer" whale, is actually the largest member of the dolphin family. The animals get their nickname from the fact that they sometimes hunt actual whales for food and are the "most widely distributed mammal in the world" besides humans, according to MarineBio.org."

[David]

Tragedy at Sea World Orlando

WDCS is horrified to learn of the death of a trainer at Sea World’s park in Orlando, Florida yesterday. She appears to have drowned after falling or being pulled into the tank with a 30-year-old male orca, Tilikum. Our condolences are with the trainer’s family and colleagues, following this shocking incident.

Unfortunately, this was not an isolated incident. Tilikum, who was captured from the wild in Iceland, was, with two other orcas involved in the death of a trainer in Canada in 1991 and in 1999, a man who had reportedly snuck into the park during the night was found dead, draped over the back of Tilikum, also at Sea World’s Florida facility. The incident also follows the death of another trainer at Loro Parque in Tenerife at the end of 2009, during in-water training with an orca who was imported from Sea World in 2007.

WDCS believes orcas are unsuitable for captivity. It places them under considerable stress and where they live short lives and are liable to aggressive behaviour towards humans and other orcas that is never seen in the wild. The tragic events are a reminder that orcas are wild, strong and often unpredictable animals.

This tragedy highlights the fate of other captive orcas such as Corky, held at another of Sea World’s parks and confined for 40 years after being captured from her native waters in Canada. WDCS and Orcalab are calling for her to return to her native waters.

Source: ORCAS In Captivity: A Tragic Story

[JeffM]

So what will...and what *should* happen to Tilikum now? I think a SeaWorld spokesman has said that they won't put him down, but it seems like they can't release him given what happened with Keiko a few years back. Is he doomed to sit in that little environment at SeaWorld without even the shows/rehearsals to give him *some* exercise?

Are there even any non-show aquariums that have an environment for orcas?

[Cetacea]

So what will...and what *should* happen to Tilikum now? I think a SeaWorld spokesman has said that they won't put him down, but it seems like they can't release him given what happened with Keiko a few years back. Is he doomed to sit in that little environment at SeaWorld without even the shows/rehearsals to give him *some* exercise?

Are there even any non-show aquariums that have an environment for orcas?

I think we can safely say they will not put him down, he's far to valuable and orcas are in short supply. He can't be released,SeaWorld made sure of that, years back when the possibility was being discussed after the first incident.
I'm afraid he's just going to vegetate away in a tiny pool, getting more and more bored and frustrated in the process.
Unfortunately there are no 'retirment homes' for non showing orcas, usually they die in their prime in captivity anyhow, the idea has certainly been put forward by anti-captivity activists as a way to end captivity, ie. putting up sea pens to retire animals too, similar to the one made for Keiko in Iceland.Rehab is certainly very expensive and it should be considered whether it is worth it, although some scientists believe even long term captives can be successfully released. There is a detailed theoretic release plan for Lolita, the orca at the Miami Seaprison, er, Seaquarium. Not that they will hear of it. They turned down a $1 million offer for her I heard a while back when thisdocumentary came out.
As for Keiko, Seaworld likes to hail it as a failure it should be noted that Keiko was an extremely unsuitable candidate but nevertheless, he lived close to 2 years semi indepedently, occasionally dissapearing for days on end and in the end succumbed to a disease that is one of the most common killers in aquariums, pneumonia. While it was not a complete success, it should not be forgotten his body condition prior to his death was better than it ever was in captivity.

[Jellyfish123]

I watched this youtube video where he grabbed her by her pony tail. If you think about it, this giant creature was acting strange, and she gets in the water anyway. I feel so bad for the killer whales there anyway. They are probably really unhappy.

[Cetacea]

I watched this youtube video where he grabbed her by her pony tail. If you think about it, this giant creature was acting strange, and she gets in the water anyway. I feel so bad for the killer whales there anyway. They are probably really unhappy.

I didn't realise there was a video. Of the incident itself you mean? As macabre as it may seem I would sort of be interested in seeing that, may I stress watching someone die is not my idea of a good time, but it may give some insight into what happened, could you link it?

[Jellyfish123]

I'll post the link, but it doesnt show her dying. The man who filmed it turned off the camera right before it happened. They show a still frame of the porpise with the pony tail in its mouth!

Video from : youtube.com

[tropical_shark]

I wonder if he thought it was a seal and natural reaction kicked in! I often wonder how they manage to keep orca and dolphins together! I guess the Orca is so lonely, uses its potential prey as a friend.

[Cetacea]

I wonder if he thought it was a seal and natural reaction kicked in! I often wonder how they manage to keep orca and dolphins together! I guess the Orca is so lonely, uses its potential prey as a friend.

SeaWorld have indeed used the seal excuse before but I doubt it, I mean they are highly intelligent animals one moment she is rubbing him and the next he thinks this trainer which he knows intimately is a seal? I don't think so. Nevertheless it would be interesting to know which eco-type Tilikum originally belongs to, I just know he's Icelandic but as far as I am aware they have both transients and residents there too.

[tropical_shark]

SeaWorld have indeed used the seal excuse before but I doubt it, I mean they are highly intelligent animals one moment she is rubbing him and the next he thinks this trainer which he knows intimately is a seal? I don't think so. Nevertheless it would be interesting to know which eco-type Tilikum originally belongs to, I just know he's Icelandic but as far as I am aware they have both transients and residents there too.

Oh i didn't no Seaworld had said that! Still an animal though! I'm not big into cetaceans lol! I didn't watch that link with sound the first time! I thought the trainer was stood on the side where they were feeding and was pulled in from there!

[Cetacea]

SeaWorld have indeed used the seal excuse before but I doubt it, I mean they are highly intelligent animals one moment she is rubbing him and the next he thinks this trainer which he knows intimately is a seal? I don't think so. Nevertheless it would be interesting to know which eco-type Tilikum originally belongs to, I just know he's Icelandic but as far as I am aware they have both transients and residents there too.

Oh i didn't no Seaworld had said that! Still an animal though! I'm not big into cetaceans lol! I didn't watch that link with sound the first time! I thought the trainer was stood on the side where they were feeding and was pulled in from there!

Well not for this one specific, for the incident with Ky that's what they said happened. She was standing on the side, I believe in knee deep water and had just rubbed him when he grabbed her apparently, some say by the waist, others ponytailll