A theme park photographer is seeking almost $1million in damages from her employer after she slipped from a rocky bank while working in the dolphin enclosure.
Therese Anne Kerrins, 50, has launched a lawsuit in the Queensland District Court against Sea World’s operators, Village Roadshow Theme Parks for injuries she allegedly sustained in February 2023.
Ms Kerrins had been taking photos of visitors swimming with dolphins at the Gold Coast tourist attraction when she lost her footing and fell.
The painful ordeal left her with numerous physical and psychological injuries, including a ‘major depressive disorder’, according to the lawsuit.
Village Roadshow Theme Parks has indicated that it will contest the lawsuit, alleging that Ms Kerrins should have taken photos from a safer spot and that the injuries she suffered were her own fault.
The operators also described her $959,488.23 claim for damages as ‘excessive’, the Courier Mail reported.
Ms Kerrins had been taking photos for Sea World’s Family Dolphin Program in a ‘back pool’ instead of the main one when disaster struck.Â
Ms Kerrins, who was not familiar with the back pool, had to manoeuvre herself onto the top of rocks to take an ‘acceptable’ photo, the claim alleges.Â
Sea World photographer Therese Anne Kerrins has launched a lawsuit against Village Roadshow Theme Parks over injuries suffered in 2023
Ms Kerrins had been taking photos of families swimming with dolphins at Sea World when she was injured (stock image)
‘The plaintiff (Ms Kerrins) climbed to the top of a large set of rocks so that she could take photographs of the family while they were in the pool,’ the lawsuit claimed.
‘As she was taking photographs, she lost her footing and fell. In the course of falling, her left lower leg impacted the rocks a number of times before she fell on her left shoulder.’
As she fell, Ms Kerrins’ foot became lodged in rocks at the bottom of the pile which required her to forcefully yank it free, which caused abrasions and bleeding.
These injuries resulted in immediate pain in her left ankle and both swelling and sharp stabbing pain, the claim alleges.
It added that Ms Kerrins suffered ‘complex regional pain syndrome of the left ankle [and] musculoskeletal pain of the left shoulder’ as a result of her injuries.Â
This contributed to an aggravation of her pre-existing eating disorder and ‘major depressive disorder’, the claim alleges.  Â
Two-and-a-half years on, Ms Kerrins continues to endure ‘pain, suffering, inconvenience and loss of enjoyment of the amenities of life’ due to her injuries, the claim alleges.Â
These factors caused an initial loss of earning capacity which have extended into medical costs and still impact Ms Kerrins to this day, it added.
The Sea World photographer claims she was injured while working in February 2023
Sea World operators Village Roadshow Theme Parks will contest the ‘excessive’ claim, claiming that Ms Kerrins was responsible for her own injuries
 In its defence, Village Roadshow claimed that Ms Kerrins could have taken photos from a ‘flat, level ground surface’ or a sand bank.
If neither of these options were viable, Village Roadshow claimed she should have requested the dolphin trainer move to a more suitable position.
The theme park operator claimed that no other photographer had ever taken photos from the rocky bank and that it was ‘unnecessary for the plaintiff to position herself on the set of rocks’.Â
It also alleged that Ms Kerrins fell because of a ‘syncopal event’, or due to her fainting.
Village Roadshow conceded that Ms Kerrins had ‘some pain and suffering’ but insisted her claim for damages was ‘excessive and inconsistent with evidence’.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Village Roadshow Theme Parks for comment.
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Gold Coast photographer injured in freak fall at Sea World launches ‘excessive” lawsuit claim