ORLANDO, Fla. – SeaWorld Orlando and its water park Aquatica Orlando are following COVID-19 safety measures, according to a recent inspection by Orange County officials.


What You Need To Know

  • SeaWorld Orlando, Aquatica recently passed "strike team" inspection

  • Orange County officials visited parks to check compliance with COVID-19 safety measures

  • Both parks were found to be in compliance

The county’s designated “Strike Team,” officially called the Orange County Business Compliance Assistance Team, visited both parks on Wednesday to evaluate how well they were adhering to county-mandated measures designed to reduce the spread of coronavirus, such as mandatory face masks and social distancing protocols.

Both parks were in compliance with the measures, according to documents the county provided to Spectrum News.

The Strike Team is comprised of code enforcement, fire department and Florida Department of Health employees. The team’s park visits, according to Orange County spokeswoman Despina McLaughlin, are “unannounced.”

As for Disney World and Universal Orlando, McLaughlin said that the team plans to visit “the other large theme parks in the very near future.”

After closing in mid-March in response to the pandemic, SeaWorld reopened its parks in June with a number of new health and safety measures, including face masks and temperature checks.

SeaWorld is also operating its parks in a limited capacity and requiring visitors to make reservations ahead of their visits.

Prior to reopening, SeaWorld laid out what protocols it would implement to keep both employees and visitors safe. The plans, which were presented to an Orange County task force, received the go-ahead from both Orange County mayor Jerry Demings and Gov. Ron DeSantis.

SeaWorld still hasn't called back many of its workers, who have been furloughed for months. The company on Friday revealed that some of its furloughed workers would be permanently laid off

Theme parks in Central Florida have seen lower attendance numbers due to a lack of demand and also travel restrictions placed on international visitors.