In Defense Of Animals Praises OSHA Citation Of SeaWorld For Knowingly Endangering Human Lives

San Rafael, Calif. (August 25, 2010) – In Defense of Animals (IDA) today praised the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for issuing three safety violations, including one classified as “willful,” to SeaWorld Orlando as a result of the death of Dawn Brancheau, a dolphin trainer killed at SeaWorld by Tilikum, a 17 foot male orca.

“Orcas are apex predators who suffer intensely from the confinement and artificial, barren environments SeaWorld and other aquariums provide them,” said Scotlund Haisley, President of In Defense of Animals. “It is hazardous to force them into such close proximity to humans, let alone to swim with them, so we should expect more injuries and deaths to occur as long as they are publicly displayed and forced to perform circus-style tricks for food.”

Whistleblower Linda Simons, a previous Director of Health and Safety for SeaWorld Orlando, said she was fired two months after Brancheau’s death because SeaWorld did not want her to speak with OSHA about the event. Simons confirmed OSHA’s willful citation by claiming SeaWorld knowingly exposed staff to the dangers of working with Tilikum, who had previously killed two people. She said that a relevant safety drill was performed just weeks before the tragedy occurred and that it had failed miserably.  When Tilikum killed Ms. Brancheau, Simons described the scene as “chaotic” and that up to 85 people had responded.  She was shocked to see additional staff placed at risk when they were permitted to jump into the medical pool to try to free Ms. Brancheau from Tilikum’s jaws as he continued to thrash about.

SeaWorld’s supposedly “educational” dolphin acts have led to previous injuries and death. IDA challenges the educational value of the programs, noting that viewers learn nothing about the natural behaviors, instincts and needs of orcas in the wild, and in fact are given false and misleading information. “SeaWorld’s tiny pools and demeaning performances actually suppress the natural behaviors of orcas and reward unnatural behavior,” said Haisley. “Most visitors to SeaWorld shows actually leave with less accurate information about orcas than they had when they arrived.”

SeaWorld contends their public display programs are “valid under federal permits and under the supervision of the U.S. Department of Commerce National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.” Written testimony submitted by NMFS to the House Committee of Natural Resources in April stated otherwise, revealing that after a permit is issued to a facility for public display, they have “no additional oversight over the holding, breeding and care of animals” and that monitoring educational programs of public display facilities is not a focus of the agency. NMFS further confirmed that the public display industry have been regulating and evaluating themselves since 1994 when amendments to the Marine Mammal Protection Act took place.

“With NMFS allowing SeaWorld and other commercial theme parks to establish and regulate their own education programs, they are endangering the lives of people and allowing the public to be mislead about the needs of orcas and how to conserve them in their natural habitat,” Haisley added. “IDA recommends that NMFS declare orcas as unsuitable for commercialized captivity and halt orca breeding.  Orcas and other cetaceans should only be held in captivity when they are found sick or injured and need rehabilitation before being released. If they cannot be released, they should be held in spacious coastal sea-pens where they can live out their lives with more stimulation, more choices, and other natural habitat surrounding them. Tilikum should be retired to a coastal sea-pen. Currently he is being held indefinitely in a tiny, barren tank with barely any room to swim in any direction.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Scotlund Haisley, Scotlund@idausa.org, 707-981-7701