SeaWorld killer whale show resumes after trainer death
ORLANDO, Fla. - Employees wept and audience members grew silent yesterday at SeaWorld as the theme park's popular killer whale show resumed with a photo montage memorial for a trainer who was killed by one of the orcas in front of horrified spectators three days ago.
The show had been shut down since veteran trainer Dawn Brancheau, 40, died Wednesday after rubbing a 22-foot, 12,000-pound orca named Tilikum. The animal grabbed her ponytail and pulled her into the water in front of about 20 spectators. The medical examiner says she probably died of traumatic injuries and drowning.
More than 2,000 people packed the park's stadium yesterday for the first show since Brancheau's death.
The audience seemed thrilled, applauding and cheering as the whales zipped around their tank and splashed spectators during the show - with the theme of "believe," about a young boy who sees an orca and dreams of one day becoming a whale trainer. It was a fitting tribute to Brancheau, whose family said she always wanted to work with the whales.
"I just wanted to be here for this show. It's so special," said Russell Thomphsen, 65, who said he is a season-ticket holder for SeaWorld. "This touches so many lives."
The whale trainers received a standing ovation as they approached the platform before the show, part of the multimillion-dollar enterprise centered around "Shamu" - the stage name given to all the performing orcas.
The trainers weren't allowed in the water, meaning the whales' handlers did not surf on top of the marine mammals or fly into the air. Instead, they directed the whales from outside the huge tank's acrylic walls.
SeaWorld officials have said trainers won't swim with the orcas until they finish reviewing what happened to Brancheau.
SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment president Jim Atchison said Friday that Tilikum will remain an "active, contributing member of the team," in part because the killer whale show is big business at SeaWorld. Tilikum did not perform yesterday.
Captured nearly 30 years ago off Iceland, Tilikum has grown into the alpha male of captive killer whales, his value as a stud impossible to pin down. He now has been involved in the deaths of two trainers and requires a special set of handling rules, which Atchison wouldn't specify.
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Out East with Doug Geed: Wine harvests, a fish market, baked treats and poinsettias NewsdayTV's Doug Geed visits two wineries and a fish market, and then it's time for holiday cheer, with a visit to a bakery and poinsettia greenhouses.
