What trainer was killed at SeaWorld?

Dawn Brancheau

Dawn Brancheau

Dawn Therese Brancheau (née LoVerde, April 16, 1969 – February 24, 2010) was an American senior animal trainer at SeaWorld. She worked with orcas at SeaWorld Orlando for fifteen years, including a leading role in revamping the Shamu show, and was SeaWorld's poster girl.

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Dawn Brancheau - Wikipedia

worked at SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida, for many years. In her time there, she became a beloved trainer, and her shows with world-famous orcas brought millions of dollars into the park. But on Feb. 24, 2010, she was killed in a rare, and unprovoked, attack by one of the orcas she'd loved so much.

How did the SeaWorld Trainer get killed?

Dawn, an experienced SeaWorld trainer, died of 'drowning and traumatic injuries' after she was mauled by Tilikum, a 5.4 tonne orca measuring more than 22ft in length.

What happened to the killer whale that killed trainer at SeaWorld?

“It's one of the most important stories that we've ever published.” Tilikum died in 2017, succumbing to a bacterial lung infection, one of the conditions that orcas can contract in captivity.

How many SeaWorld trainers have been killed by whales?

While orca attacks on humans in the wild are rare, and no fatal attacks have been recorded, as of 2022 four humans have died due to interactions with captive orcas. Tilikum was involved in three of those deaths.

What orca killed the trainer?

Dawn Therese Brancheau (née LoVerde, April 16, 1969 – February 24, 2010) was an American senior animal trainer at SeaWorld. She worked with orcas at SeaWorld Orlando for fifteen years, including a leading role in revamping the Shamu show, and was SeaWorld's poster girl. She was killed by an orca, Tilikum.

SeaWorld trainers describe death details

Why was Tilikum not put down?

As our staff testified in the OSHA proceedings, Tilikum was not considered an aggressive animal and did not have a single incident report of aggression during his time in our care. Even trainers who are now opposed to the zoological display of killer whales describe Tilikum as a very even-tempered animal.

Did Shamu eat his trainer?

Dawn Brancheau, an experienced 40-year-old animal trainer at SeaWorld Orlando, was killed yesterday afternoon. Billed as Shamu, Tilikum, a 12,000-pound (5,440-kilogram) male killer whale, reportedly grabbed Brancheau by the upper arm and pulled the trainer underwater.

Is Baby Shamu still alive?

Shamu died that year at SeaWorld of pyometra (a uterine infection) and septicemia (blood poisoning). She was just 9 years old.

Did Tilikum eat Dawn?

Those who worked with her said their bond was strong and based on love and trust. John Hargrove, who was a senior trainer at Seaworld at the time of Dawn's death, said: "We'll never know why Tilikum made that choice to grab Dawn and pull her into the pool.

What happened to Tilikum after Dawn's death?

Following Dawn's tragic death, Tilikum was kept in a tiny enclosure that limited his ability to swim, communicate with other orcas, and interact with humans even further. He was reported to have been floating listlessly in the water for hours at a time, a behavior never seen in wild orcas.

How many deaths did Tilikum cause?

The experienced trainer is one of three people to have been killed by Tilikum, once the world's largest killer whale in captivity, who continued to be housed at the park in Orlando until his death in 2017.

How many offspring does Tilikum have?

Tilikum had not only been SeaWorld's star attraction; he had also been the company's star breeder, having fathered 18 calves with eight of the company's female orcas. But under pressure from humane groups, the company in 2016 announced that it would stop breeding orcas.

Is Tilikum the killer whale still alive?

Tilikum died Jan. 6, 2017, a Friday, surrounded by trainers, care staff and veterinarians, SeaWorld said. Amusement park officials said he was being treated for “a persistent and complicated bacterial lung infection” before his death.

Who was the first person Tilikum killed?

Three Tilikum Kills

About seven years into its captivity, Tilikum killed his first victim. A young part-time Sealand employee slipped and fell into the pool in 1991. Immediately the trio, Tilikum and the two female orcas, submerged marine biology student Keltie Byrne.

Who was eaten by an orca?

FOR years Dawn Brancheau dreamed of working at SeaWorld - but it was a job that ultimately killed her when she was attacked by Tilikum the orca. Regarded as one of the world's top killer whale trainers, she was working with the 12,500lb sea creature when it grabbed her.

Is Tilikum related to Shamu?

Tilikum. Another “Shamu” (whose actual name was Tilikum) was kidnapped from his home waters off Iceland—abducted from his pod at just 2 years old. He was kept in small tanks with other suffering, frustrated, captive orcas—and the fights between them often left him injured and bloody.

Is keto still at Loro Parque?

Keto is one of seven orcas currently held captive at Loro Parque.

Are there still orcas at SeaWorld 2021?

As of November 5, 2021 there are:

In the wild, male orcas live to an average of 30 years (maximum 50-60 years) and 46 years for females (maximum 80-90 years). At least 170 orcas have died in captivity, not including 30 miscarried or still-born calves. SeaWorld holds 19 orcas in its three parks in the United States.

Did Dawn's family sue SeaWorld?

In the lawsuit filed this week, the family says Bobby "saw the look of horror and desperation on Dawn's face as she was swimming for her life," and, "Tilikum violently yank her down to the depth of the pool." The family claims the boy now has nightmares, is often angry, and doesn't eat.

Do the trainers still swim with Shamu?

SeaWorld voluntarily pulled trainers from the water after Dawn Brancheau's death. It has not put trainers back in the water since, said Fred Jacobs, a company spokesman, in an e-mail. SeaWorld still has trainers go in the water with the killer whales during "safety desensitization training" in pools, Jacobs said.

What happened to the boy in the Lighthouse of the orcas?

Agustín's stunned parents took him to Valdés Peninsula. Bubas wrote a book based on that story, “Agustín Open Heart,” now becoming a movie. Agustín, the boy that had been diagnosed with autism, is now 19, is an artist, attends university and has a girlfriend.

Is Tilikum Still Alive 2021?

After 33 years of living captive in marine park pools, Tilikum, SeaWorld's best-known killer whale, died this morning, January 6, in Orlando.

Does SeaWorld still do shows with orcas?

In 2016, SeaWorld announced that we were ending our killer whale breeding program and that the orcas in our care are the last generation at our park.