**Published Oct 14, 2025 • 8-minute read**
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In an undated handout photo, Kristy Burgess is seen kissing a beluga whale at Marineland in Niagara Falls, Ontario. Photo by Kristy Burgess / Handout / THE CANADIAN PRESS
**TORONTO** — A former beluga trainer has raised alarms about the deteriorating conditions at Marineland, citing crumbling infrastructure, staffing shortages, and insufficient resources that pose serious risks to the belugas. She insists that the whales should be relocated immediately.
Kristy Burgess, who was employed at the Niagara Falls park when a young beluga was euthanized in February, condemned Marineland’s threat to put down all 30 of its remaining belugas if emergency funding is not secured, calling it a “repulsive” tactic that exploits the whales as bargaining chips.
“We need to get them out,” Burgess stated, referring to the last captive whales in Canada. “Immediately.”
This marks Burgess’s first public statement regarding her experiences at Marineland, as the very whales she cared for now face potential death. Since 2019, nineteen belugas, one dolphin, and one killer whale have died at the park, according to a database compiled by The Canadian Press from internal documents and official statements.
Burgess described the dire state of the belugas’ pools, Arctic Cove and Friendship Cove, which are in urgent need of repair, with peeling paint and chunks of concrete falling into the water. “Whales have come in with paint chips on their tongues,” she noted. “The pools are falling apart.”
She added that rocks from the pools’ decorative features have crumbled into the tanks, providing some amusement for the whales, who enjoy playing with or attempting to eat them. “We’ve had people dive into the water to retrieve large, heavy rocks, probably the size of dinner plates,” Burgess explained.
Burgess also highlighted frequent breakdowns in the water system, which hinder the park’s ability to adjust water levels—an essential aspect of providing medical care to the whales. This has resulted in delays in treatment and forced trainers to take additional risks to care for the animals in deeper water.
Marineland has not responded to multiple requests for comment regarding Burgess’s allegations.
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