2 Year Old Dragged into Water by Gator at Disney Resort

[Anonymous]

How can me make the alligators extinct again, sounds easy to do

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How dumb are these parents? Who in the United States doesn't know that ANY body of water in FL (besides the ocean), no matter how pretty or inviting it may seem likely has gators and/or venomous things. I love that we're splitting hairs between swimming and wading, when this child shouldn't have been touching water, period. Even if the signs don't say it - why risk it?

Wonder how close the dad was to the kid - bc I would think a dad standing right there could grab the kid under the armpits end pull hard enough to pull him out. Though I guess that also depends on the gators grip.

Sad but I don't want to see Disney paying out huge sums here.

Okay, for one thing, if you believe that every single person in the US is aware of the dangers of alligators in Florida, you are a moron. Full stop.

Secondly, even if this kid was standing 12 inches away, not touching the water, the alligator still could have gotten him.

Really? I would wager that people who don't know about gators in Florida are the idiots.

Yes, I know that you would wager that. Because you don't know shit about how the world works.

We're not talking about the world. We're talking about the US. And if the US school system hasn't taught families well off enough to visit Disney that there are gators in Florida, they're morons.

[Anonymous]

The seven seas lagoon, as pictured in 1971 promotional materials, just gives me the creeps. Apparently it's connected to a natural lake. Maybe the lawyers said no the alligator warning signs because that would be an admission of sorts. Don't know. But the payout will be huge--as it must be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How dumb are these parents? Who in the United States doesn't know that ANY body of water in FL (besides the ocean), no matter how pretty or inviting it may seem likely has gators and/or venomous things. I love that we're splitting hairs between swimming and wading, when this child shouldn't have been touching water, period. Even if the signs don't say it - why risk it?

Wonder how close the dad was to the kid - bc I would think a dad standing right there could grab the kid under the armpits end pull hard enough to pull him out. Though I guess that also depends on the gators grip.

Sad but I don't want to see Disney paying out huge sums here.

Who gives an eff what some mega corporation has to pay. I'd sue them out of existence. In America, anything is possible with a jury. I hope we hear about the first trillion dollar award.

Not going to happen. It doesn't mean it was the parent's fault. But it wasn't Disney's either. Again, would you sue a county beach for a shark attack?

This story has more details, and it looks like the child was pretty far in the water.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-disney-world-alligator-attack-toddler-20160615-story.html

He was 1-2 ft into the water?! Slightly more than wading. Disney most certainly should not pay.

He was a foot from where the water line began. Not in water that was 1-2 feet deep.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in Florida and I've vacationed and stayed at Disney World Resorts. I would never have expected a gator to be in a resort lagoon either. It looks like a swimming pool in the pictures and it also appears to be fenced in.

How the hell did a gator get in there?

Actually now that I look at more pictures it does appear to be a large body of water. The fence is appears to be there to prevent young kids from going to the water w/o an adult.

I do recall seeing "no swimming" signs at some of the lagoon type areas (not this particular lagoon). One of the workers there mentioned that snapping turtles can be an issue so I kept my kids out of that water and swam in the pools instead. I didn't think about gators at the time. I don't think that a parent would automatically be aware of that danger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How dumb are these parents? Who in the United States doesn't know that ANY body of water in FL (besides the ocean), no matter how pretty or inviting it may seem likely has gators and/or venomous things. I love that we're splitting hairs between swimming and wading, when this child shouldn't have been touching water, period. Even if the signs don't say it - why risk it?

Wonder how close the dad was to the kid - bc I would think a dad standing right there could grab the kid under the armpits end pull hard enough to pull him out. Though I guess that also depends on the gators grip.

Sad but I don't want to see Disney paying out huge sums here.

Okay, for one thing, if you believe that every single person in the US is aware of the dangers of alligators in Florida, you are a moron. Full stop.

Secondly, even if this kid was standing 12 inches away, not touching the water, the alligator still could have gotten him.

Really? I would wager that people who don't know about gators in Florida are the idiots.

Yes, I know that you would wager that. Because you don't know shit about how the world works.

We're not talking about the world. We're talking about the US. And if the US school system hasn't taught families well off enough to visit Disney that there are gators in Florida, they're morons.

Serious question: are you the Kate Middleton poster?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How can me make the alligators extinct again, sounds easy to do

Why are you blaming the wild animal? While tragic, they are doing what is natural.

[Anonymous]

Disney is 100% at fault. The toddler was not swimming. No swimming probably made the parents feel they needed to watch out for drowning. There are no signs at Disney warning about giant alligators attacking if you stick your feet in the water. I always wondered why they had it set up like a beach that backs up to a lagoon you can't swim in. They should have gotten rid of the "beaches" along time ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in Orlando and the seven seas lagoon isn't for swimming. Florida lakes are unsafe to swim in due to bacteria. Disney has no alligator signs posted.

I can see how alligator signs might not be very "magical" but honestly that is appalling. Especially if they are as prevalent as this thread suggests.

I stayed at the Polynesian Resort ten years ago and we were surprised how much it is set up like a beach resort. All that sand to run around on right up to the lagoon. There were signs for no swimming. There were NO signs for beware of alligators or do not walk with your feet in the water as this toddler was doing. Families are all over the beach at night watching fireworks. Disney encourages it. It looks like a beach and Disney has it set up that way even though they know alligators lurk in the waters.

Yikes terrifying!

I grew up in Florida and we just avoid all natural lakes like the plague. My husband is from California and makes fun of me all the time for this. I think if you grow up there you know better than to go into a lake. You'll be fine as an adult, but a two year old or a dog is just the right size for them...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How dumb are these parents? Who in the United States doesn't know that ANY body of water in FL (besides the ocean), no matter how pretty or inviting it may seem likely has gators and/or venomous things. I love that we're splitting hairs between swimming and wading, when this child shouldn't have been touching water, period. Even if the signs don't say it - why risk it?

Wonder how close the dad was to the kid - bc I would think a dad standing right there could grab the kid under the armpits end pull hard enough to pull him out. Though I guess that also depends on the gators grip.

Sad but I don't want to see Disney paying out huge sums here.

Who gives an eff what some mega corporation has to pay. I'd sue them out of existence. In America, anything is possible with a jury. I hope we hear about the first trillion dollar award.

Not going to happen. It doesn't mean it was the parent's fault. But it wasn't Disney's either. Again, would you sue a county beach for a shark attack?

This story has more details, and it looks like the child was pretty far in the water.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-disney-world-alligator-attack-toddler-20160615-story.html

Hmm...from the picture in that article it appears that the signs only said “Steep drop off, Deep water, no swimming.” While I agree that the parents were foolish to not follow the signs and disregard the “no swimming”, I do think Disney could have been more clear in warning that there are gators in the water. Deep water alone is not a reason to not swim, especially when they went out of their way to make it a “beach” area.

Probably because Gator attacks are exceedingly rare. There has not been one in the 45 years at Disney, and there's only been 15 gator deaths in Florida since 1973, the earlier article states.

People are all over the lakes in Florida, swimming, jet-skiing, boating, etc. Just like on the ocean with sharks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in Orlando and the seven seas lagoon isn't for swimming. Florida lakes are unsafe to swim in due to bacteria. Disney has no alligator signs posted.

NP. That's true. Disney does have signs telling people not to swim in the lakes. Also, The alligators are attracted to the area because people are always feeding the alligators, as if they are pigeons. I never understood that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How dumb are these parents? Who in the United States doesn't know that ANY body of water in FL (besides the ocean), no matter how pretty or inviting it may seem likely has gators and/or venomous things. I love that we're splitting hairs between swimming and wading, when this child shouldn't have been touching water, period. Even if the signs don't say it - why risk it?

Wonder how close the dad was to the kid - bc I would think a dad standing right there could grab the kid under the armpits end pull hard enough to pull him out. Though I guess that also depends on the gators grip.

Sad but I don't want to see Disney paying out huge sums here.

Okay, for one thing, if you believe that every single person in the US is aware of the dangers of alligators in Florida, you are a moron. Full stop.

Secondly, even if this kid was standing 12 inches away, not touching the water, the alligator still could have gotten him.

Really? I would wager that people who don't know about gators in Florida are the idiots.

Yes, I know that you would wager that. Because you don't know shit about how the world works.

We're not talking about the world. We're talking about the US. And if the US school system hasn't taught families well off enough to visit Disney that there are gators in Florida, they're morons.

Serious question: are you the Kate Middleton poster?

I don't even know what you're talking about. If you think you can realize certain posters, you need a DCUM break.

[Anonymous]

Clearly judging from this post people have a different interpretation of what "No Swimming" means. I think the signs should be clearer, especially for people who have no idea about Florida's wildlife.

[Anonymous]

How have they not found the boy yet?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in Florida and I've vacationed and stayed at Disney World Resorts. I would never have expected a gator to be in a resort lagoon either. It looks like a swimming pool in the pictures and it also appears to be fenced in.

How the hell did a gator get in there?

Actually now that I look at more pictures it does appear to be a large body of water. The fence is appears to be there to prevent young kids from going to the water w/o an adult.

I do recall seeing "no swimming" signs at some of the lagoon type areas (not this particular lagoon). One of the workers there mentioned that snapping turtles can be an issue so I kept my kids out of that water and swam in the pools instead. I didn't think about gators at the time. I don't think that a parent would automatically be aware of that danger.

You used to be able to swim in the lakes at Disney, but not for the past 25 years or so.