From the OS: Gator drags child into Seven Seas Lagoon

[JohnD]

Easy. Wanders in from Bay Lake and swims into the lagoon via the water bridge. There are other tributaries, including Reedy Creek.

Here's a topographical map of the area. I purposely cropped it by having WDW toward the bottom. A LOT of lakes to the north. Easy for alligators to migrate.

 

[GhostHost1000]

while I don't blame Disney for this... I have questioned why they have those beaches open for access. It's florida and people are on vacation and will go in that water whether they should or not when you sand around it and place beach chairs everywhere to simulate a beach.

unfortunately it was probably just a matter or time something happened... I just hate it did. Reminds me of the speedway incident and them traveling on the course backwards when the guardrails weren't built that way which then caused a death..... just an accident waiting to happen unfortunately

all beaches are now closed... fences will likely be put up to keep people out

 

[JohnD]

Right, but don't they essentially control Bay Lake too? Or is it considered more "wild?" Just seems if they can relocate all the gators in Bay Lake and 7 Seas, there wouldn't be any unless "nature finds a way" somehow.

Definitely "wild", including areas formerly occupied by guests (e.g. Discovery Island and River Country).

 

[ford91exploder]

The topic of alligators comes up every trip I make to WDW. Disney will move nuisance alligators on property to AK or to a local gator refuge but there is no way to 100% guarantee that there aren't any in the lake. Like others have said people find them in their swimming pools. This incident is tragic but unfortunately this can happen. Alligators can also grab people on the beach if you are close enough to the waters edge. My heart goes out to the family.

Gators can move very fast on land for short distances a small gator 4-6' can move up to 25 MPH. A big one is only capable of 7-8 MPH. The only real defense is to be aware of the water that log just might be a gator The problem is while the big ones are scarier on land and far more lethal in the water the small ones and Disney does not remove gators until they reach 6' or are a nusaince the small ones are far more dangerous to children and pets on land

 

[senor_jorge]

Sorry for the late post, but I was sleeping during most of this thread!



Placing blame on Disney seems kind of ridiculous, in my opinion. Disney World is in Florida and alligators exist in Florida. A lot of them. To think that they're to blame for not preventing alligators from being in a fresh water lagoon... it's just silly.




I'm nitpicking now, but I live 30 minutes from Disney and it is NOT light out at 9:30pm.


The whole thing is just awful. I know how easy it is to throw blame around and I'm honestly shocked that I'm saying this, but I'm not sure anyone is to blame here. Usually I'd be the first person to blame the parents for not keeping a closer eye on their kids, but from everything I've heard, I believe my own parents would probably have let me splash my feet in the water while we were watching a movie, even at 9:30 at night.

My husband and I are relatively new to Florida and, while we KNOW that there are gators in the water here, I don't think we've taken it very seriously before now. My husband has walked our 10lb dogs close to the lakes here and that's going to end. I know people don't want to see the beaches closed, but we've all seen Jaws. Maybe closing the beaches is for the best.

I do wish they'd stop killing every alligator they find though. At this point, they aren't finding the child. They're just going around killing the wildlife who are just hanging out in their natural habitat and minding their business, which seems really senseless knowing the child isn't going to be saved. :/

It's generally not a good idea to allow an apex predator that's been confronted by man, and come out on top, the ability to continue to stalk their prey in an area as well stocked as WDW.

 

[betty rose]

Three words, I'm so sorry.

 

[JohnD]

I'm sensing a blame the victim mentality creeping into this thread.

 

[ford91exploder]

Also I think the last thing on anyone's mind at WDW is to watch out for aggressive gators.

Actually it's only people who live in the country who seem to be aware that wildlife is to be left alone and watched for at all times

 

[Matt_Black]

Wading is just as foolish for a 2 year old.

Oh, I'm not disagreeing with you. It's just that many are defending being in the water with the "The sign said 'No SWIMMING'; they were WADING!" Either way, if your little one wanted to splash around in the water, GF has a pool with children's areas specifically designed for that purpose.

 

[rufio]

It's generally not a good idea to allow an apex predator that's been confronted by man, and come out on top, the ability to continue to stalk their prey in an area as well stocked as WDW.

Disney World is built in the middle of an alligator habit and you think it's acceptable to kill all the alligators that live there?? How about humans just use some common sense instead. Stay out of the water.

 

[HM Spectre]

I'm sensing a blame the victim mentality creeping into this thread.

I absolutely hate the internet jump-to-conclusions mobs that form after things like this. How about we stop trying to place blame and instead show some compassion to a family that just lost their young son?

 

[MOXOMUMD]

Officials are giving an update at noon.

 

[JohnD]

Officials are giving an update at noon.

Hoping for the best but fearing the worst.

 

[FrankLapidus]

A 2 year old splashing around in the shallows of a fresh water lake in Florida at night in the summer in an area where idiots feed the wildlife is just shy of attaching a chum bag to them when you go snorkeling.

I agree. Sadly it would seem that not enough are aware of the truth in this statement and they need to be

What has become alarmingly clear in the wake of this is the lack of awareness amongst some of the potential dangers posed by the local wildlife in Florida. Just listening to some of the things said on television here in the UK and reading comments posted on news stories covering this tragedy has shown just how oblivious some people are. When you're reading comments along the lines of "what are aligators doing in a lake at a Disney hotel" then it's clear there's an issue here, a pretty basic lack of understanding of the habitat in which WDW is located and the consequential need to be vigilant. It's quite scary to hear people talking about how they were at WDW recently and let their children go into that lagoon and other natural bodies of water without giving any thought to the possible danger in doing so.

Disney has to do something to address this in some way, whether it's by putting up more signs, having hotel staff warn guests checking into the resort or placing pamphlets in rooms for guests to read through. Just something to raise some awareness in those people who might have never been to Florida before, who might have no idea of the danger they could unknowingly put themselves in.

 

[note2001]

I really can't believe some of the messages I'm seeing on facebook about removing all wildlife from Disney parks and resorts.
Species wise, we seem to be the most dull minded when it comes to the world. People tend to forget that we have crafted our living and relaxation environments out of nature. Everything from bugs and birds to bobcats and moose will remind us of this fact on a daily basis, and yet it doesn't sink home.We are guests in their environment, not the other way around.

This was a tragedy. I don't want to lessen the sadness of the event, but I do hurt worse for the family of the boy who was hit by a Disney bus in Fort Wilderness as well as the driver.

 

[ford91exploder]

Yeah, where I live squirrels run away when you approach them. At Epcot last month, I was sitting on a bench and a squirrel scratched my arm. I hopped up and ran away because it startled me and it started to chase me. My point being is that wildlife is definitely being fed. Here in the smoky mountains that is a big no no. So I guess it still surprises me that people can be so clueless but again I guess people did put a baby Buffalo in their car out west, so you cant fix stupid.

Up here in New England same here bird feeders come in mid March otherwise you have bear problems

 

[GhostHost1000]

It is completely unreasonable and absolutely digesting to say "the parents exercised poor judgement".

Wth is wrong with people?????

while I don't blame the parents or Disney for that matter... personally I wouldn't trust wading in a lake in my home state at night, much less in Florida... I think that is where some people are coming from..... but I will say Disney makes the "beaches" appear so inviting, of course people will dip their toe in there

 

[Matt_Black]

It is completely unreasonable and absolutely digesting to say "the parents exercised poor judgement".

Wth is wrong with people?????

You don't think that allowing your child in the water at night in an area clearly marked "No Swimming" isn't poor judgment? I feel bad for the parents, but I'm also not ready to allow tragedy to somehow absolve them of responsibility or accountability.

 

[asianway]

while I don't blame Disney for this... I have questioned why they have those beaches open for access. It's florida and people are on vacation and will go in that water whether they should or not when you sand around it and place beach chairs everywhere to simulate a beach.

unfortunately it was probably just a matter or time something happened... I just hate it did. Reminds me of the speedway incident and them traveling on the course backwards when the guardrails weren't built that way which then caused a death..... just an accident waiting to happen unfortunately

all beaches are now closed... fences will likely be put up to keep people out

With all those cars on property, its just a matter of time before a multiple fatality wreck.

And all those bars? Wait until the first DUI fatality.

Or so long as were talking about natural wildlife, all the venomous snakes are also an accident waiting to happen.

Tragic things sometimes happen. Otherwise lock yourself in the house and never leave.

 

[MississippiBelle]

Maybe you should learn the difference between taking reasonable precautions and just throwing caution to the wind or acting like helpless prey in the presence of a predator.

Until now, most of us wouldn't have thought twice about letting kids splash in the water. These people were from the middle of the country. They don't have to worry about alligators like people in Florida do. Heck, I live on the banks of one of the biggest lakes in my southern state and I don't even think about it. We certainly have them here. It's easy to arm chair parent after the fact, but the reality is that the vast majority of on property guests have no earthly clue that the native fauna poses such a threat. This is a horrible freak accident. I can only imagine that the parents of this poor child are in the darkest parts of their minds right now going over and over the same exact arguments some of us are making against them.