As we await the judgment from the two-week long hearing between the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) and SeaWorld of Florida, expecting the repercussions from this historical challenge to potentially transform orca programs at SeaWorld and other marine parks where orcas are confined in captivity, WDCS forecasts the release of award-winning author David Kirby’s book, Death at SeaWorld: Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity.
Set to release July 17th, Death at SeaWorld was recently reviewed by the Library Journal, a prestigious publication consulted by bookstores and libraries when sourcing new titles for their collections, which selected the book as one of 13 non-fiction titles being released in July to highlight and preview. In his book, Kirby reveals the underbelly of the orca captivity industry and reveals the risks to both humans and orcas as he explores the death of SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau who was killed in February 2010 by the orca Tilikum at the Orlando park. The book was also recently nominated by St. Martin’s press for the prestigious 2012 J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award, which labeled the book “a groundbreaking scientific thriller that exposes the dark side of SeaWorld, America’s most beloved marine mammal theme park" and is given out by the Columbia School of Journalism.
The hearing was held in Sanford, Florida near Orlando the week of September 19, 2024 and continued through a second week in mid-November. At the heart of the hearing is an administrative law judge’s attempt to evaluate whether the August 2010 citation issued by OSHA against SeaWorld is justified, and whether recommendations prescribed by OSHA to remedy the cited hazards are feasible. OSHA’s citation slapped the company with a willful safety violation--its most severe category--and a $75,000 fine following a six-month investigation of the February 2010 death of trainer Dawn Brancheau. WDCS was onsite and provided first-hand accounts of the proceedings.
Although we may not know for months what the judge’s decision will be, SeaWorld’s strategy to make the OSHA citation seem unreasonable (regarding its recommended mitigation measures) or inconsistent (targeting just performances, not all trainer-orca interactions) seems to have backfired in the midst of mounting evidence submitted by the OSHA attorneys.
Meanwhile, SeaWorld’s orca shows continue to be under fire. On Tuesday, January 31st , Orlando’s NPR station (WMFE) will air a 30-minute SeaWorld focused segment at 9:30AM EST. The segment will repeat on Wednesday, February 1st and Saturday, February 4th. The show can be heard in real time and online and will host a panel discussion about the future of SeaWorld and its orca programs with author David Kirby, former SeaWorld orca trainer Dr. John Jett, and a local college business and ethics professor. Former SeaWorld trainers have also launched a new website, Voice of the Orcas, that consolidates the most current information from behind the scenes and personal accounts of their time within the orca captivity industry.
Media attention to controversial captures, unnecessary deaths, inhumane transportation and injuries incurred in whale and dolphin interaction programs has had an impact on the public’s perception of marine theme parks. Opinion polls conducted over the past decade reveal that most people now think that captivity of marine mammals is justified only when there are measurable scientific or educational benefits.
SeaWorld recently announced its largest expansion in the park’s history which WDCS believes underlies its continuing diversification and investment in thrill rides and alternative forms of entertainment in the face of increasing public pressure and scrutiny surrounding the uncertainty of its orca programs. At the same time, SeaWorld continues to prepare for trainers to work in the water with the orcas once again. What will the future hold for SeaWorld?
WDCS believes it is time to question our culture of cruelty, and calls on the public to be a part of the solution. We are asking the public to walk away from marine parks that depend upon the suffering and confinement of orcas to build their profit margins. WDCS believes that orcas do not belong in captivity and continues to call for the phasing out of orca shows and attractions.