Pool Underwater News Today

Position to be in with an animal like him. so i think -- i think even if dawn was sitting here with me right now, she would tell you that was a mistake she made. >> reporter: remember, tilikum had killed before. in 1991 he and other two other whales pulled a trainer who fell into the pool underwater in a park in british columbia. thats why seaworld was more cautious with him. trainers were not allowed to swim with tilikum. >> hes not used to people being in the water. he was laying there looking...

I screamed and she screamed. i started yelling to the other trainer because he wasnt looking. i said, he took her down. he took her down. >> reporter: earlier reports suggested the whale had grabbed brancheaus waist, but today, seaworld set the record straight. >> our best analysis at this point is he grabbed her ponytail. >> reporter: look closely at this video. you can see brancheaus long ponytail swinging back and forth. but it may not have looked attractive to this six-ton killer whale until...

Point is he grabbed her ponytail. >> reporter: look closely at this video. you can see brandcheaus long ponytail swinging back and forth. it may not have looked attractive to this six-ton killer whale until she got closer. the man who trained her said she made a fatal mistake. >> i think she made a mistake by putting her, and allowing herself, to be that close to his mouth and laying down. thats a pretty vulnerable position to be in with an animal like him. so i think -- i think even if dawn was...