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The killer whale show Friday at SeaWorld in San Antonio was cut short after an Orca named Ky turned on trainer Steve Aibel.
The whale slammed Aibel underwater repeatedly as other trainers rushed to the side of the tank.
Houston resident Justin Lecourias was among the spectators who witnessed the attack.
He told San Antonio’s KRIV that the whale seemed out of control.
"The whale would come up and the guy would go
under before he hit him so I guess it wouldn't hurt him that much and
then one time he didn't come up for quite a period of time and that
really freaked me out then, " Lecourias said.
Aibel, who has been Ky’s trainer for a decade, wasn’t injured, but said he was caught off guard by the rough treatment.
He's still not sure what prompted Ky's behavior, but he says Ky
is near breeding age and may have just been feeling his adolescent
hormones.
