2 Year Old Dragged into Water by Gator at Disney Resort

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All the people who already knew Disney is infested with gators:
It's a white sand beach that reaches the water. The child was one foot from the sand, in inches of water. Had he been 12 inches back, standing on the sand, watching the movie, the fireworks, whathaveyou, and been attacked by the very same alligator, would you still blame the parents? At what point is Disney culpable?

Why is anyone culpable? Tragic incidents happen.

bc Disney knew it had dangerous animals on this property and failed to adequately warn.

[Anonymous]

I'll take it one step further. Hell this one shows people actively in the water:

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mousellaneous.org%2Fsitebuilder%2Fimages%2FGrandFl-304x236.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mousellaneous.org%2Fresorts%2Fdeluxe%2Fgf.html&docid=PJWvmA_ZmnQHoM&tbnid=7f9vdgqFXvPX_M%3A&w=304&h=236&bih=923&biw=1280&ved=0ahUKEwj0paDnuqrNAhUGDSwKHTSSAkYQMwhlKEEwQQ&iact=mrc&uact=8

[Anonymous]

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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.

I am highly educated. I live in New England and visit beaches nearly every day. I am aware that alligators live in Florida, and specifically in the Everglades. I would never dream that there are alligators at the shoreline of a Disney advertised "white sands" beach where families are encouraged to play and watch fireworks. Absent signage saying "No Wading" due to bacteria, alligators, whatever, my 2 year old would certainly have been allowed to go in the water up to his ankles as I stood nearby.

There but by the grace of God go I. Just horrifying.

This is what confuses me. Why is Disney somehow separate from Florida? Is it not in Florida? How would you reasonably expect them to ensure there is no wildlife in their waters? Seriously. How?

It's a big swamp.
It's a big state. I didn't realize it was so uniformly infested with alligators.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No one must have been that worried about that lake. Disney even offers water activities including tubing for children:

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/resorts/bay-lake-tower-at-contemporary/recreation/

This is all the same beach/lake that the surrounding hotels are on.

Oh dear.

Though in other vacation spots, the Outer Banks, for example, there is parasailing and tubing and there are sharks in the water, so I guess it is the same risk?

However, i think the common person knows there are sharks in the ocean. Not sure common people know there are crocs at Disney (I never gave it any thought).

This is the problem. Disney is not some self-contained island. Disney is in Florida. Florida has gators. Hence, Disney has gators.

This was a Disney-made lagoon in a Disney resort. I would absolutely assume that if there were gators, Disney would not let anyone near it or at a BARE MINIMUM would have barriers and signs warning of the risk. I know there are alligators in Florida, but I would trust Disney to control or at least warn people of the risks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1. A "no swimming" sign is not sufficient to cover the risks associated with alligator attacks. That child could have been killed simply walking near the edge of the water.

2. It's not reasonable to expect resort guests coming from Europe, Canada, or yes even Nebraska to know how prevelant alligators are, especially on Disney property where a beach has been set up.

3. Disney was grossly negligent and WILL pay up the a$$ including to this who just witnessed the attack. That's guaranteed.

I disagree. And, I would also say that anyone who doesn't know that Florida has alligators is an imbecile. It's practically the first thing you think of!

Here's the thing - even if you know "Florida has alligators" you may not be familiar with alligator behavior. If a sign says "no swimming", and you make the logic leap that you should not swim due to alligators, you might think your kid is safe WALKING IN LESS THAN A FOOT OF WATER, because that is not swimming. Maybe you think alligators are like sharks - and someone might not swim on account of a shark in the water, but they'd probably walk along the beach and not fear a shark attack. Signage was inadequate and inappropriate to the threat.

I'm really trying to understand this mindset. Alligators are a pretty popular animal. Even if you don't know everything about their behavior, I would argue that the basic stuff is known to ADULTS. I'm really trying to understand this idea that alligators are some weird and mysterious animal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1. A "no swimming" sign is not sufficient to cover the risks associated with alligator attacks. That child could have been killed simply walking near the edge of the water.

2. It's not reasonable to expect resort guests coming from Europe, Canada, or yes even Nebraska to know how prevelant alligators are, especially on Disney property where a beach has been set up.

3. Disney was grossly negligent and WILL pay up the a$$ including to this who just witnessed the attack. That's guaranteed.

I disagree. And, I would also say that anyone who doesn't know that Florida has alligators is an imbecile. It's practically the first thing you think of!

+1

It's basically the mascot. I'm not from FL, I went there only once as a young child. And even I know this. I don't know how people don't know alligators aren't everywhere in Fl.

Hey morons, knowing that alligators exist in Florida and knowing the potential exists for them to snatch up your two year old at a manicured Disney beach are two completely separate things. Are you Disney lawyers or just southern slow?

Yes. Gators in Florida-->Disney's fault. Gimmy money. Nevermind the cost. Americans.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Pictures of the area. This was a tragic mistake, but the child should not have been playing in a foot of this water. The moment the child was heading towards it, the parents should have intervened. It's a sad mistake all around, but this is obviously not play-able water area.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3642167/Two-year-old-child-dragged-water-alligator-near-Disney-s-Grand-Floridian-resort.html

Can anyone make out what the sign says in the beachy pic?

[Anonymous]

I find the posters arguing back and forth that "The parents are to blame!" "NO, DISNEY IS TO BLAME!" are equally stupid and guilty of the same common desire to assure themselves that nothing like this could happen to them.

You're both the same, deep down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:There are signs in the Lake that says "no swimming"

Yup. And they're spaced pretty closely apart - like 20 feet? You can see 2 signs in this picture.

How hard would it have been to add "Alligators" to that list. Or say "stay out of water" instead of "no swimming." I've been to that beach and kids are regularly wading and splashing in the water with resort staff around and never seen any of them intervene to stop it. It is quite reasonable to assume based on that sign that "swimming" = swimming. Not wading.

I don't know, because parents are supposed to be watching their kids? And the steep drop off is warning against wading, because both done by walking in.

I don't understand how some people can't draw simple conclusions by themselves.

That area doesn't even look like a place you can wade. You don't know the child waded in that spot. You don't know the terrain where he was splashing.

Actually, the area where the child was wading (pics of tents here http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/06/15/13/354D82C300000578-3642167-The_child_had_been_paddling_with_his_parents_and_four_year_old_s-a-14_1465992068960.jpg) looks even more inhospitable than these nearby signs.

The parents made a grave mistake - very sad, and still pretty relateable. But the parents made a grave mistake. I feel for them - we all make mistakes, but clearly the parents let their guard down too much.

You must be a troll b/c your conclusions make no sense. Or maybe you do not understand how fast, and cunning gators actually are. Do you know the same thing could have happened with the family 20 yards away from the water?
If the family is not aware that there are dangerous animals in the area, then how could you hold them responsible. Your conclusion only works if the child died from drowning in deep water. Not what happened.

Alligators are faster in water. While I wouldn't want to experience this first hand, it's harder for them to get you into the water from 20 yards away. If you're near the edge and they get you, your chances of survival are slim to none.

If you do not know gators are in the water, or even on the premises, then why would you worry about that?

Well, I WOULD worry about gators in ANY body of water in Florida. Except pools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1. A "no swimming" sign is not sufficient to cover the risks associated with alligator attacks. That child could have been killed simply walking near the edge of the water.

2. It's not reasonable to expect resort guests coming from Europe, Canada, or yes even Nebraska to know how prevelant alligators are, especially on Disney property where a beach has been set up.

3. Disney was grossly negligent and WILL pay up the a$$ including to this who just witnessed the attack. That's guaranteed.

I disagree. And, I would also say that anyone who doesn't know that Florida has alligators is an imbecile. It's practically the first thing you think of!

Here's the thing - even if you know "Florida has alligators" you may not be familiar with alligator behavior. If a sign says "no swimming", and you make the logic leap that you should not swim due to alligators, you might think your kid is safe WALKING IN LESS THAN A FOOT OF WATER, because that is not swimming. Maybe you think alligators are like sharks - and someone might not swim on account of a shark in the water, but they'd probably walk along the beach and not fear a shark attack. Signage was inadequate and inappropriate to the threat.

I'm really trying to understand this mindset. Alligators are a pretty popular animal. Even if you don't know everything about their behavior, I would argue that the basic stuff is known to ADULTS. I'm really trying to understand this idea that alligators are some weird and mysterious animal.

How familiar do you expect Nebraskans to be with alligator behavior? I had no idea alligators were this aggressive. I thought they mostly left people alone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"So far, no. I suspect there will be a lot more dead gators from that lake. If anything, I think Disney is likely to use this to get whatever waivers they need to cull alligators on their property more ruthlessly. "

Good. I hope they start culling statewide, and throughout the Southeast. Enough with the stupid environmentalists. The gators are a dangerous nuisance. They should have died out with the dinosaurs. Biologically, they're much, much older than us. They've had a good run, now it's time to go.

When you remove in animals natural predators, other species are allowed to flourish, and then become problems. We can just remove one creature from the ecosystem everything to me fine.

What other species? Pelicans? I'm OK with that.

You are clearly an excellent and well-trained ecologist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1. A "no swimming" sign is not sufficient to cover the risks associated with alligator attacks. That child could have been killed simply walking near the edge of the water.

2. It's not reasonable to expect resort guests coming from Europe, Canada, or yes even Nebraska to know how prevelant alligators are, especially on Disney property where a beach has been set up.

3. Disney was grossly negligent and WILL pay up the a$$ including to this who just witnessed the attack. That's guaranteed.

I disagree. And, I would also say that anyone who doesn't know that Florida has alligators is an imbecile. It's practically the first thing you think of!

Here's the thing - even if you know "Florida has alligators" you may not be familiar with alligator behavior. If a sign says "no swimming", and you make the logic leap that you should not swim due to alligators, you might think your kid is safe WALKING IN LESS THAN A FOOT OF WATER, because that is not swimming. Maybe you think alligators are like sharks - and someone might not swim on account of a shark in the water, but they'd probably walk along the beach and not fear a shark attack. Signage was inadequate and inappropriate to the threat.

I'm really trying to understand this mindset. Alligators are a pretty popular animal. Even if you don't know everything about their behavior, I would argue that the basic stuff is known to ADULTS. I'm really trying to understand this idea that alligators are some weird and mysterious animal.

You're expecting too much from adults. Lower your expectations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How have they not found the boy yet?

The ugly truth is that the Gator may have eaten him. They don't normally actually eat people - the bite can kill, but they rarely actually eat people - but this was a small child.

I'm amazed at the people asking how a Gator got into the lagoon. We have two gators (that I know of) in the man made retention pond in our back yard. Wildlife control will relocate them when they reach 6 feet. Every house on our lake has kids. The kids are outside all the time and know not to play in the water. I worry more about the water moccasins than about the gators.

It's been said so many times in this thread - In Florida you assume all fresh water has gators.

You sound like you are in Florida or somewhere else in the South. When will you understand that the rest of the world is NOT the South and thus we do not have the same concerns? How about this: we do not understand why you cannot drive in the snow. Huh? Why can't you? Why? Why? Why? Any smart person with a brain in their head should be able to do it. Why can't you?

Do you get it now???????

PPP might be in the south, but she is the face of a jury pool, if there is a trial. It is a question that all the jurors would wonder about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:All the people who already knew Disney is infested with gators:
It's a white sand beach that reaches the water. The child was one foot from the sand, in inches of water. Had he been 12 inches back, standing on the sand, watching the movie, the fireworks, whathaveyou, and been attacked by the very same alligator, would you still blame the parents? At what point is Disney culpable?

Disney not all all culpable. Neither are parents, in the scenario you paint.

It's wildlife. Not every accident has someone to blame.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How is Disney negligent if there are signs that say not to go into the water? I'm serious.

Holding an outdoor movie near the lake:

Assuming the responsibility for removing gators from Bay Lake and missing this one;

Failure to post signs that explain how dangerous gators are (the family is from Nebraska)

Failure to train the lifeguard on how to wrangle alligators

Train the lifeguard on how to wrangle alligators?

In Florida, you do not swim in freshwater. Because of alligators. This isn't something that lifeguards can deal with.