From the OS: Gator drags child into Seven Seas Lagoon

[Daveeeeed]

I know I'm the unpopular cruel heartless opinion but no one should be framing Disney as the devil money hungry that didn't warn them

I honestly almost cried when I heard the news of this baby dying, but there is no reason why Disney did not have proper signage warning of wildlife. No one is saying Disney is money hungry, of course Disney would've prevented this if they knew this would happen, so I think it was more of a mistake that they did not have signage when they knew there were gators there, but there's still no reason that Disney did not have signage of wildlife when they knew gators were present in that body of water.

 

[HouseHacker97]

This is 100% nothing like the spot this happened.

The beach was zero entry. Zero. Entry. It seems like you're forming opinions based on your own experiences instead of the facts of the story.

Keep in mind the family broke the rules, it's not like they disappear when the water is zero entry

 

[HouseHacker97]

I think I'm beating a horse with a stick now and I'm definitely too argumentative for an event like this. It's an extremely saddening tragedy and I can't imagine what the family is going through. I don't mean to insult anyone- I just don't want something like this to ever happen again

 

[Electricsoup]

Keep in mind the family broke the rules, it's not like they disappear when the water is zero entry

That's up for interpretation. Either way, the gator easily could have climbed out of the water and gotten him with another few steps. Your argument here is pretty invalid.

 

[flynnibus]

Again, many of these posts really make me wonder about people.

Its worse on facebook...

Idiots arguing that the 'No Swimming' signs are violated by Disney themselves because Disney allows boats and water sport rentals. She argues 'No Swimming means for the ENTIRE lake!!' *bangs head*

IMO - the No Swimming signs are simply because the water is not guarded and the beach is not intended for bathers. Why, it doesn't need to state. The water is off limit for bathers/beach recreation.

But I can't believe Disney ever scolded anyone for walking with their feet in the water.

There are inherent dangers with the water at night... EVERYWHERE. In Florida, you also have to add the critter danger.

Crazy story, but I wish it would just finish as 'lessons learned' and letting a family come to terms with their tragedy.

 

[FigmentForver96]

That's up for interpretation. Either way, the gator easily could have climbed out of the water and gotten him with another few steps. Your argument here is pretty invalid.

It doesn't matter what COULD HAVE happened. The child was in the water! And you know tonight a family has lost THEIR CHILD! Stop and think sbout that. A two year old child is dead and is not coming bsck. That entire family will feel that their entire life. Not just parents, but friends, grandparents, siblings and more. come on people

 

[JohnD]

Not sure if this has been mentioned in the wake of this horrible event, but I think Disney being held responsible may just be dependent on it being a Disney Sanctioned movie night on their resort's beach. This was organized and arranged by them. This was advertised by them. We're not talking about it being random guests setting up a projector that works on an iphone to watch a movie on the beach and others congregating. The only reason these people were on that beach, at that time of night, was for this event. It was up to Disney to properly secure it or just err on the side of safety and move it elsewhere, like poolside. Especially if this is a known time for gators to feed. This poor family.

Sadly agree.

 

[aw14]

Its worse on facebook...

Idiots arguing that the 'No Swimming' signs are violated by Disney themselves because Disney allows boats and water sport rentals. She argues 'No Swimming means for the ENTIRE lake!!' *bangs head*

IMO - the No Swimming signs are simply because the water is not guarded and the beach is not intended for bathers. Why, it doesn't need to state. The water is off limit for bathers/beach recreation.

But I can't believe Disney ever scolded anyone for walking with their feet in the water.

There are inherent dangers with the water at night... EVERYWHERE. In Florida, you also have to add the critter danger.

Crazy story, but I wish it would just finish as 'lessons learned' and letting a family come to terms with their tragedy.

You and I have disagreed many times in the past. However, you are 100% right here. This shouldn't be about someone at fault. This family is going through unimaginable horror. Let's allow them to do it.

 

[natatomic]

Keep in mind the family broke the rules, it's not like they disappear when the water is zero entry

The signs say "no swimming," not "do not even touch the water with your big toe." There IS room for interpretation. The fact is that they WERENT actually swimming. And if you thinking walking in 1-2 inches of water is swimming, please come over and "swim" in the pool in my driveway after a heavy rain.

Also, can you honestly say you've never broken a rule in your life? You've never - not once - drive even 1 mph over the speed limit? If you were to be killed in a car accident tomorrow doing 71mph in a 70mph zone, would you hope the Internet is smearing your name, "well, he DID break the rules."

 

[Daniel Johnson]

Yea, as much as it's easy to play arm chair quarterback in this situation, I couldn't imagine having to morn a loss of a loved one at Disney. Regardless of fault, its pretty horrible to fathom. I feel for them. I really do

 

[HouseHacker97]

The signs say "no swimming," not "do not even touch the water with your big toe." There IS room open for interpretation. The fact is that they WERENT actually swimming. And if you thinking walking in 1-2 inches of water is swimming, please come over and "swim" in the pool in my driveway after a heavy rain.

Also, can you honestly say you've never broken a rule in your life? You've never - not once - drive even 1 mph over the speed limit? If you were to be killed in a car accident tomorrow doing 71mph in a 70mph zone, would you hope the Internet is smearing your name, "well, he DID break the rules."

The 2 year old child was sitting in a foot of water tho- its different if an adult was standing up vs when an infant is nearly submerged. Again, I don't mean to seem heartless. I'm sorry for their loss and something like this cannot happen ever again

 

[DanStat]

Poor Lane and his family. This is so tragic it's really beyond comprehension for me. I have no idea what his family must be going through. I hope they are able to find peace and closure.

 

[Baltar]

Ever seen a blue or purple flag on the beach? That's there to let you know there is dangerous marine life in the area...

But what if someone doesn't know what the colors mean? What if they aren't from the area. I'm being facetious.

But that's only when they spot something right? So if an attack happens when they don't see a shark, we don't expect to sue.

 

[Baltar]

The 2 year old child was sitting in a foot of water tho- its different if an adult was standing up vs when an infant is nearly submerged. Again, I don't mean to seem heartless. I'm sorry for their loss and something like this cannot happen ever again

Child wasn't in a foot of water. He had his "foot" in the water.

 

[natatomic]

The 2 year old child was sitting in a foot of water tho- its different if an adult was standing up vs when an infant is nearly submerged

He was a foot in the water - as in 1-2 inches deep a foot off the shoreline, from what I understand. At its deepest point, it's only around 6 feet deep (aside from the ferry boat channel which is 15 or so). You'd have to go in probably pretty far to get a full foot in.

 

[JohnD]

holy moly theres 600 new messages since i last responded

Yeah. Less about the terrorist attack. I would chalk it up to this being a WDW forum after all.

 

[oceanbreeze77]

Is there any confirmation about how big the gator was? I mean he is a small child but isn't he also kind of big for a 4 footer to drag? Let alone keep grasp while the father wrestled him.

 

[DisneyJunkie]

By the sound of it, this same event likely would have happened if the child wasn't in the water at all, but standing at its edge. That's prime location for a gator on the hunt: small prey, near shore. So we can't really place blame on anyone, as it's a case of "wrong place, wrong time".

 

[21stamps]

The 2 year old child was sitting in a foot of water tho- its different if an adult was standing up vs when an infant is nearly submerged. Again, I don't mean to seem heartless. I'm sorry for their loss and something like this cannot happen ever again

No, the child was 1 foot from the shore. Again- zero entry. 1 foot from shore does not equal 1 foot deep. Unless there is new info that I didn't know about?

 

[JohnD]

The Seven Seas Lagoon is kinda gross. That water is nasty, the shorelines are weedy, puke-green and mucky in places, and any time I see people swimming in there (in spite of the posted signs, it happens ALL the time,) I think they are insane. You could not pay me to get in that water, and there was no doubt in my mind that it was teeming with gators. While I don't know that Disney NEEDS to change anything given how extremely rare this event was, I maybe wouldn't be opposed to a barrier/additional deterrent of some sort that would be a CYA for them. I mean, I LOVE the loop resorts for many reasons, but "let's go hang out by the man-made swamp" has never been high on my list of things to do, anyways. It's not like the SSL is super-glamorous as it is.

This crazy scenario just never crossed my mind, though, in part because "fatal, unprovoked alligator attack along a shoreline at Disney World" is not something we've ever heard of happening before.

I noticed the "gross" aspect when I posted a topographical image of the area. All the lakes looked blue but SSL looked brown.