Disney Skyliner shutdown and evacuation - October 6 2019

[Lilofan]

The cast in general would not have that information. But there are people monitoring the weather and those that need to be aware are. This includes those that make decisions regarding delaying canceling entertainment or cycling our attractions or something like the skyliner

I disagree. Some cast would have that information. Many I see have earpieces so they get the info from somewhere. The sun could be shining and not a drop of rain then all of a sudden the outdoor venues start shutting down. The staff probably gets proactive with a storm approaching.

 

[peter11435]

I disagree. Some cast would have that information. Many I see have earpieces so they get the info from somewhere. The sun could be shining and not a drop of rain then all of a sudden the outdoor venues start shutting down. The staff probably gets proactive with a storm approaching.

Very few cast have earpieces. Leaders, coordinators, some custodial and a few others. Yes some cast would have that information but only after being told by their leaders or coordinators. If their role does not require action due to the approaching storm they will likely not be informed.

 

[Creathir]

[


The cast in general would not have that information. But there are people monitoring the weather and those that need to be aware are. This includes those that make decisions regarding delaying canceling entertainment or cycling our attractions or something like the skyliner

Exactly, though the OPs point still does stand, albeit their experience might have been a little off basis.

There are storms which just pop up from time to time and catch folks off guard. Even meteorologists at NOAA miss them from time to time.

But Disney, as much as they want to make money, doesn’t want the negative press and lawsuit headaches from a ride full of dead kids riding Dumbo. Plus during weather shutdowns, guests can be doing far more productive things, like making a purchase in a gift shop.

It’s completely in Disney’s best interest to ensure guest safety.

 

[Incomudro]

It's very rare for a thunderstorm to just *pop* into existance. They do build up, clouds show up on radar and the potential is right there. In alll the years I worked at a theme park, not once did the employees get caught in a storm that *popped* in. Guests might, if they were just looking at the sky.

Yes, the point is the Skyliner could have been good to go - because conditions didn't indicate a thunderstorm threat within say an hour or more time span.
But then the line was stopped for three hours.

 

[rowrbazzle]

It's very rare for a thunderstorm to just *pop* into existance. They do build up, clouds show up on radar and the potential is right there. In alll the years I worked at a theme park, not once did the employees get caught in a storm that *popped* in. Guests might, if they were just looking at the sky.

I guess you never saw Twister. One minute you're watching The Shining at the drive-in, the next you're caught in a tornado. Now imagine being in a gondola when that happens...

 

[jt04]

They're not always right either, as meteorology relies on prediction and weather is not always predictable.

Don't tell algore.

 

[HiJe]

Am I the only one with the WeatherBug app on their phone that gives plenty of push notifications of incoming storms and severe weather?

 

[RustySpork]

Don't tell algore.

That's a totally different thing. Don't make it political.

 

[Jon81uk]

While I believe the possibility of a gondola striking a tower - and falling - due to high winds in WDW is highly unlikely...
Highly unlikely everywhere.
I did think about the stoppage the other week, and imagined how people in the cars would feel if that stoppage happened and a severe thunderstorm rolled in.
I know that the gondola's are supposed to all head in if a thunderstorm is (correct me if I'm wrong) a 1/2 hour out.
The fact that the gondola's stopped for 3 hours could have subjected the occupants to a severe thunderstorm should one have come through during that period of time.

As has been previously said, they probably could have got the line running and guests evacuated by running the cabins back to the station. But as a guest called 911 and requested an emergency evacuation they couldn't run the cabins and get everyone else off until the medical emergency had been dealt with. If they had run the line to get people off then it would have been a half hour stoppage instead of 3 hours.

 

[flynnibus]

If they had run the line to get people off then it would have been a half hour stoppage instead of 3 hours.

That's way too generous. The 911 issue took about 90mins and they had that person down by ~10pm. They were stopped for about 30mins before the 911 call was even made.. and it still took them nearly 2hrs AFTER the person was evac'd to clear the line fully.

The 911 issue was a contributing factor to the duration, but it wasn't the difference between short and long... Disney's own incident was still by far the majority of that.

 

[Disstevefan1]

I do not have all the facts, but what I have heard is: folks were stranded in cabins for 3 hours because of a medical emergency in a cabin.

Had not the medical emergency, the line could have been turned on and all folks could have been off in 20 minutes.

3 hours seems to be a long time to get the (I think two) people in distress.

I know this is speculation after the fact, but why not turn on the line, the emergency respondents be at the closest platform to deal with the patient.

How is this different from someone at home calling an ambulance, 911 stays on the line till the ambulance gets there, in this case, 911 stays on the line until the Skyway gets to the closest platform (only a few minutes).

 

[flynnibus]

I do not have all the facts

You can stop right there.. because the rest is all flawed because of that.

 

[Rich Brownn]

I think your experience is rather rare. I can tell you from my experience that thunderstorms can pop up quickly, be very intense and then diminish rapidly. I can recall a number of occasions when I have entered a ride such as IASW and the sky was clear. However, during the ride I could hear loud thunder and when I exited the ride I observed that the ground was very wet from a torrential downpour yet the sky was once again clear with bright sunshine. Such rapid thunderstorms are very common at WDW. Conversely, it's rather rare for WDW to have a full day of rain. The don't call Florida the "Sunshine State" for nothing.

Again, it requires clouds to build. They build quickly but not that quickly. And decent meteorologist can tell you if conditions are building for a storm long beforehand.

 

[Rich Brownn]

I guess you never saw Twister. One minute you're watching The Shining at the drive-in, the next you're caught in a tornado. Now imagine being in a gondola when that happens...

Even in Twister there was a prediction for tornadoes in the area. Its why the chasers were there .

 

[RustySpork]

Again, it requires clouds to build. They build quickly but not that quickly. And decent meteorologist can tell you if conditions are building for a storm long beforehand.

I really have to know..how long have you lived here? A week? Certainly it's possible to predict patterns that indicate storms, but there is no such thing as 100% accuracy in any of those predictions. Even the NCEP with all of their computing power isn't accurate all the time. At least not yet. If you think a storm can't form faster than it can be predicted, you've never been outside in Florida.

 

[flynnibus]

I really have to know..how long have you lived here? A week? Certainly it's possible to predict patterns that indicate storms, but there is no such thing as 100% accuracy in any of those predictions. Even the NCEP with all of their computing power isn't accurate all the time. At least not yet. If you think a storm can't form faster than it can be predicted, you've never been outside in Florida.

That's the problem... you're talking about PREDICTIONS vs TRACKING. Doing real-time monitoring of weather conditions on a small 50mile area is not the same thing as trying to predict tomorrows weather.

 

[RustySpork]

That's the problem... you're talking about PREDICTIONS vs TRACKING. Doing real-time monitoring of weather conditions on a small 50mile area is not the same thing as trying to predict tomorrows weather.

I'm only talking prediction because that's what was brought to the table. Tracking a storm that already exists is not the same as predicting if it will exist. Realtime monitoring of weather conditions is still a predictive measurement until the storm begins to exist.

 

[peter11435]

I really have to know..how long have you lived here? A week? Certainly it's possible to predict patterns that indicate storms, but there is no such thing as 100% accuracy in any of those predictions. Even the NCEP with all of their computing power isn't accurate all the time. At least not yet. If you think a storm can't form faster than it can be predicted, you've never been outside in Florida.

Where did you get your degree in Meteorology?

 

[RustySpork]

Where did you get your degree in Meteorology?

Nice deflection. I earned mine at the exact same place that you and everyone else in this thread did.

 

[flynnibus]

I'm only talking prediction because that's what was brought to the table. Tracking a storm that already exists is not the same as predicting if it will exist. Realtime monitoring of weather conditions is still a predictive measurement until the storm begins to exist.

And this is where probability and other things kick in.. and why you can rely on things like Lightning Detection at a distance as indicators... not stress about needing to predict the very first lightning bolt of a storm. And why meteorologists can forecast the kind of storms that will generate lightning and make decisions based on that.

Weather moves and forms - it doesn't just magically appear out of no where.

Even your local neighborhood pool can use and rely on a local lightning detector unit to accurately know when activity is within the action distance. And places like WDW would have actual staff with more extensive data and monitoring to drive their operations choices. All this talk about 'looking up at the sky' is comical...