I-Drive pirate theater damage affects 200 employees
“Thank you for calling Pirate’s Town. This is Kimberly. How may I help you?” Kimberly Poole says in an upbeat voice that masks her worries in the wake of Hurricane Irma on Wednesday morning at the International Drivearea attraction.
For Poole and the more than 200 employees who work at Pirate’s Dinner Adventure, their jobs are uncertain.
The storm tore apart the dome of the auditorium where performances are held. Sunlight poured through a hole — estimated by attraction managers at 80 feet by 90 feet — closing the venue indefinitely. The torn vinyl hung like a ship’s sails.
“It’s custom-made,” assistant general manager Daniel Latorre said of the roof. “It’s not like a regular ceiling you can buy in Home Depot.”
It could take several weeks or months for the dome to get repaired. Owners planned to meet with the insurance company later Wednesday.
About half of the 217 employees, which includes waiters, bartenders, actors and customerservice workers, are employed full-time, like Poole. A few like Poole were called in to work Wednesday although it is unclear how long that will last while others are unemployed until the theater reopens.
“There are no concrete answers,” says Poole, 28, who started her job in high school and never left. “I’m devastated … I thought Tuesday we were going to come back to work and everything would be normal.”
For the last 10 months, Poole has saved for a house — her dream — as she window-shops online.
She might have to draw from that fund if the hours shrink or disappear completely to pay her bills and take care of her 10-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son.
But right now, she focuses on answering each phone call, responding to every email, getting through the day.
No, we’re not taking any more reservations now, Poole tells a customer. Yes, we’re issuing refunds.
General manager Dan Falls said he hopes to look at FEMA, Orange County or the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions to find financial support for his employees since he is unable to pay them all when the shows are closed.
Falls and Latorre both vowed the pirate-themed attraction would reopen, although it was still too early to know when.
“I would like customers to know we’re coming back,” Latorre said. “We’re going to continue.”
Elsewhere in the area, there was no visible major damage on businesses from I-Drive on a stretch of several miles The pirate theater, owned by Odien Inc., is located at 6400 Carrier Drive between I-Drive and Universal Boulevard.
The dinner show that takes place on a replicated 18th-century ship was featured on Food Network's "Craziest Restaurants in America" series in 2015.