Reports on the nightly news surfaced that this was not the first time Tilikum had displayed such aggressive behavior.
Reports from a SeaWorld spokesman on msnbc.com said the whale was one of three orcas blamed for killing a trainer in 1991when the woman lost her balance and fell in the pool. In 1999, a second death resulted when a man snuck into the park and ended up in the tank with the 12,000 pound killer whale.
Brancheau’s death is an unfortunate accident however it is one that could have easily been prevented. Killer whales, or Orcas, do not belong in tanks and more than elephants and tiger belong in the circus. These are wild animals that need and deserve to live in their natural habitat where they can, well, live like animals. Disaster inevitably happens when we try to make these creatures something they are not.
Brancheau’s passing is regrettable. I feel sympathy for her co-workers and her loved ones. No doubt they are grieving the tragic loss of a woman who, by all accounts, loved her job and treated the mammals like her children. Co-workers and family have explicitly stated she would not want the whale put to sleep because of this incident.
It’s ridiculous we would even consider it.
Kristen Archibald
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