The cause of death was officially recorded as "drowning and traumatic injuries" after blunt force trauma. However, the horror wasn't just caught on camera. Almost all of us grew up eating meat, wearing leather, and going to circuses and zoos. SeaWorld issued a statement that called OSHA's findings "unfounded". She had always had a huge love of animals and set her heart on becoming a trainer at Seaworld . without her left arm or part of her scalp, among other injuries, Former SeaWorld trainer Jeffrey Ventre blamed Tilikum for Brancheaus death, her clothing and left bite marks and bruises on her skin. He argued that the trainers should have used other resources before canceling the show, despite SeaWorlds official position that trainers could end a show at any time if they felt uncomfortable. Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. SeaWorld has removed Tilikum from its daily shows and ordered its trainers to keep their distance from the animal. But as Lynne Schaber waited for the whale to come to the window, she saw "him pull her in.". The park imposed the restrictions while it reviews its killer whale safety protocols. The most infamous death occurred when Tilikum pulled trainer Dawn Brancheau under . "I truly believe he looked at Dawn as an object, a toy," he said. Subscribe for new episodes. According to the OCSO report, once SeaWorld workers finally were able to extract Brancheau from Tilikum's mouth, they had to go back and get her arm, her scalp and her whistle from the tank. The New York Times reported that Tilikum died of a bacterial infection on January 6, 2017. Lynne told cops that she knew Dawn was in trouble as Tilikum was a 'possessive' animal, and once he had things in his mouth he would not release them. It was a horrifying end to the life of a woman who was fulfilling her childhood dream of working as a SeaWorld trainer. [12][50][51][52] In addition to the impact of OSHA-imposed safety-based abatements of previous work practices to prevent further similar events, Cowperthwaite began working on Blackfish in 2010 following Brancheau's death,[53][54] initially having questions about SeaWorld's "ponytail hypothesis". [33] SeaWorld discontinued water work at its three parks for about a week immediately after Martnez's death. 10-1705, Secretary of Labor v. SeaWorld of Florida, LLC", "Trio of Deaths: The Portrayal of Daniel Dukes", "Trainer Dawn Brancheau decided as child to work with killer whales", "WESH 2 interviewed late SeaWorld trainer in 2000", "Video: High Stakes Battle Between Sea World and the US Government", "United States Court of Appeals Argued November 12, 2013 Decided April 11, 2014 No. She was cautious and always abided by the park's "safety" guidelines when she was around the orcas. Shocking SeaWorld Autopsy Report Shows Massive Injuries And she drowned. They eventually coaxed Tilikum to release her by raising the bottom of one of the pools. Your Crocodile Purse and Snakeskin Boots Have a Disturbing Past, Ugandas First Vegan School Wins PETA Kindness Award, Diane Warren Is Standing With PETA to Help End the Iditarod, And the Winners of PETAs Sixth Annual Oscat Awards Are. SeaWorld's training program is highly detailed, well-communicated, and intensive. [25] This was cause enough for him to turn around to push the alarm button. [12] SeaWorld struggled with the effect of Blackfish on public perception,[46][50] and there were some cancellations by music performers who had planned to hold shows at SeaWorld. Dawn Brancheau was one of SeaWorlds star performers. [59], The Dawn Brancheau Foundation was created by her family in Brancheau's honor. She was survived by her husband, Scott. According to witnesses who had worked with Tilikum, he was known as "possessive," or an animal that would not release items once he had them. Let's Not Forget About The Other Trainer Who Died At SeaWorld She resolved to become a 'Shamu' trainer after watching a 'Shamu' show during a family vacation in Orlando. [1][11] She set her heart on becoming a Shamu trainer during a family vacation to Orlando. The cause of death was listed as drowning and traumatic injuries that the 23-foot-long killer whale caused on Brancheaus 57, 123-pound frame. Transcripts of witness statements and a preliminary report of the death were released previously. Jan Topoleski saw a wave push Dawn Brancheau's long ponytail into the mouth of a 12,000-pound orca, and then he watched as the veteran killer-whale trainer tried to pull her hair out of the mammal's jaws. For whatever reason, you are now asking the question: Why should animals have rights? READ MORE, Ingrid E. Newkirk, PETA President and co-author of Animalkind. Tilikum had been involved with the deaths of 2 other people in the past. She also dislocated her left elbow and left ear. [26], No SeaWorld trainer entered a pool to perform a show with an orca following Brancheau's death. PDF Dawn Brancheau - Autopsy Reports of Celebrities and Other Famous Dawn Brancheau Obituary (2010) - Munster, IN - The Times - Legacy.com [59]:98 The law was partly a response to the circumstances of Brancheau's death. Dawn Brancheau was an American animal trainer who worked at 'SeaWorld Orlando.' Brancheau was an animal lover from a very young age. Investigators have said that the 40-year-old trainer died from multiple traumatic injuries and drowning. Dawn Brancheau Autopsy Report | PDF | Forensics | Pathology - Scribd Current subscribers: You will continue to receive e-mail unless you explicitly opt out by clicking, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Here's why", "The Dawn Brancheau Foundation: 6 years after her death", "Dawn Brancheau Foundation | Helping Children and Animals", The Dawn Brancheau Foundation official website, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dawn_Brancheau&oldid=1139241330, Deaths due to animal attacks in the United States, Burials at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery (Alsip, Illinois), Articles with dead external links from November 2018, Articles with permanently dead external links, Articles with dead external links from November 2017, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 14 February 2023, at 03:07. [33] Four SeaWorld orcas had been delivered by wide-body cargo plane in February 2006, and SeaWorld staff trained a group of Loro Parque trainers in San Antonio and Orlando. [4][5][11][12] She graduated from the University of South Carolina with degrees in psychology and animal behavior. 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. DAWN THERESE BRANCHEAU (nee Lo Verde) St. An autopsy report released Wednesday confirmed that a SeaWorld trainer killed after a 12,000-pound killer whale pulled her underwater died of drowning and traumatic injuries to her body, including . Dawn Brancheau - Autopsy Reports of Celebrities and Other Famous . The orca's was so violent with Brancheau that part of her scalp was "forcibly torn from the head," the autopsy said. "He never showed any indication that he looked at you as a play toy that he wanted to own," Tompkins said. [15][16] In April 2014, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia denied a "petition for review",[16][29][30] with later Supreme Court justice Brett Kavanaugh being the sole judge to side with SeaWorld. A judge has temporarily ruled that video footage and photographs of the violent killing of SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau by Tilly the killer whale will not be made public. Dawn Therese Brancheau, nee Lo Verde, 40, of St. [8] Since orcas were first placed in captivity in the 1960s, there have been more than 40 documented safety incidents, with dozens of trainers being seriously injured by various orcas. C-15, p.10)," the court found otherwise: "As noted in the section addressing the recognized hazard, SeaWorld's own incident reports demonstrate that its safety program, either due to misplaced faith in operant conditioning or due to human error in implementing operant conditioning, exposes its trainers to the risks of death or serious physical injury." That they had a relationship built on trust made the events of their final meeting all the more horrifying. Gruesome 'catastrophic' injuries of trainer 'scalped' by orca in killer Brancheau's death was the third linked to the orca, the largest at SeaWorld, and detectives noted that at least two SeaWorld employees talked about Tilikum's "possessive" nature. Although the OCSO Investigative Report recorded witnesses saying that Brancheau was scrambling to escape, the 12,000-pound orca struck her squarely in the chest, before dragging her underwater and holding her there for more than 30 minutes. [60] The confidentiality considerations turn on issues that resemble those in the case of the murder of Meredith Emerson in Georgia; the laws that Georgia and Florida enacted in response to these situations are similar. WARNING: Graphic content. The autopsy determined that Dawn Brancheau died of blunt force trauma to the head, neck and torso, and drowning when the giant orca yanked her into SeaWorld's pool Feb. 24. Trainer Lynne Schaber told investigators she knew Brancheau was in trouble when Tilikum pulled her into the water because the killer whale "normally keeps things that he has and will not release them." By submitting this form, you are agreeing to our collection, storage, use, and disclosure of your personal info in accordance with our privacy policy as well as to receiving e-mails from us. [16][29][30], Brancheau and Alexis Martnez are the two SeaWorld trainers killed by an orca. Elevenyears after the accident, there are still concerns about Dawn Brancheaus last day as a SeaWorld trainer that have grave implications. [17] The autopsy concluded that Dukes' cause of death was drowning. One of her SeaWorld colleagues is certain she "loved" the 12,000-pound orca and that he loved her back.