What Did The Autopsy Report Say About Dawn Brancheau Death? Dawn Brancheau, born Dawn Therese Brancheau, was a senior animal trainer at SeaWorld in America when she was killed by an orca during a water show. Brancheau was killed by the same orca that killed animal trainers Kelty Byrne and Daniel P. Dukes.
Tilikum, the largest orca at SeaWorld Orlando, was the one who killed Brancheau. As the show ended, Tilikum dragged Brancheau to the pool, clutching her arm, and she was not released for the next 45 minutes. According to the autopsy report, she died as a result of drowning and blunt force trauma. Continue reading to learn more about the killer orca.
What Did The Autopsy Report Say About Dawn Brancheau Death?
Brancheau was drowned by Tilikum, so the autopsy report did state that she died from drowning, but it also mentioned that blunt force trauma also played a role in her demise.
Her ribs, jaw, and cervical vertebra were all broken, according to the autopsy report, and she also had her spinal cord severed. Brancheau’s scalp was completely torn off, and her left elbow and left knee were also broken.
Brancheau’s demise caused a long-lasting change in how theme parks handle wild marine animals, and the award-winning documentary Blackfish, which was based on this incident, was released.
SeaWorld adopted an instant safety policy as a result of the tragedy. The rule stipulated that no SeaWorld trainer could perform a show with an orca inside the pool.
Similar internal and voluntary restrictions were introduced before by SeaWorld, following specific other injuries to animal trainers. Nonetheless, every time, SeaWorld lifted the rule with temporary execution. However, after the Brancheau tragedy, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) action strengthened the restriction. It prompted SeaWorld to request the revocation of numerous OSHA violations and decisions regularly until 2014.
Dawn Brancheau Death Video in 2010 Explained
The unfortunate incident dates back to 24 February 2010 when the senior animal trainer Dawn Brancheau and orca Tilikum performed in the aquatic performance “Dine with Shamu.” Toward the end of the show, the orca pulled its trainer to the pool and drowned her to death.
Tilikum was an enormous orca at SeaWorld Orlando, and it was performing in a setting where the visitors dined in an outdoor restaurant observing the show from the poolside. The show went smoothly with no pre-hunches of the attack. But an unexpected thing happened when it was time for the show’s climax.
Brancheau was stroking Tilikum’s head at the side of the pool as part of the end-of-show routine while lying on a slide-out. Slide-out is a platform in the collection that is submerged approximately a foot into the water. Brancheau was there at the slide-out with her face next to Tilikum’s. She was reportedly pulled inside underwater by her hair, according to SeaWorld. However, videos swirling on the Internet depict that Tilikum grabbed Brancheau by her shoulder, quickly pulled her down, and drowned her.
To detour Tilikum, SeaWorld employees dropped food and used nets to catch it. They eventually directed Tilikum to a smaller medical pool because they thought it would be simpler to calm him there. But, it was too late. Tilikum freed Brancheau’s body after around 45 minutes, and she was dead until then.
Keltie Byrne Was Another Victim Of Tilikum
Keltie Byrne, a Canadian animal trainer and champion swimmer, was also killed by Tilikum. When a herd of orca whales drowned Byrne in a pool of contained water in 1991, she was working as a trainer at the Canadian theme park Sealand of the Pacific.
The date was February 20, 1991. Keltie Byrne slipped and fell into the whale tank at Sealand of the Pacific during her shift. Tilikum grabbed Byrne’s foot and dragged her underwater as she fell. Even after she passed out in the water, the whales reportedly refused to let Byrne go, preventing rescue efforts.
She was eventually declared dead, and her corpse was pulled from the three whales’ tank using a big net. The Tilikum that killed Byrne was then sold to the American SeaWorld parks by Sealand of the Pacific, announced defunct following the Keltie Byrne incident.
