Girl Passed Out at Space Mountain

[SANDKRUSER]

We just got back from the World. On Thursday, October 5 at about 10:00 a.m. we were at Space Mountain. As we were coming into the exit area after riding the ride and getting out of the vehicles, a little girl (about 8) in front of us just collapsed onto the ground. The dad picked her up and brought her over to the benches there and was holding her on his lap. The mom and their other daughter were standing there. The little girl was passed out and unresponsive. We were right behind them so stopped to see if we could help. My husband had a hanky and we had a water bottle so wet the hanky and the dad applied it to her head. The girl remained unresponsive. The cast members noticed the girl and came over and asked if she needed medical assistance. The dad, at that point, just thought she had fainted and said "no, not yet". We stood there with them for about 15 minutes and she still had not woke up. She was breathing and her eyelids were fluttering but she did not wake up. The dad finally told the cast members they needed medical assistance. We then decided to leave and we left. We've spent the rest of the time we were at WDW wondering if she was okay. I checked this website when we got home and did not see anything and also checked the Sentinel's website and did not notice anything. Did anyone out there hear anything about this incident? Maybe a cast member? I just wanted to make sure she was okay. It was very scary. If I would have been the mom, I think I would have been panicking way before they seemed to become concerned. She was out cold for the 20 or so minutes we stood there with this family before we left.

Because we didn't hear anything on the news, we assumed everything ended up okay but were just wondering if anyone had heard anything.

 

[Captain Chaos]

Oh no.. I hope the little girl is alright... I mean, what is wrong witht he dad? 15 minutes later he decides he needs medical attention? Somehow, I believe he will find a way to blame Disney if anything is wrong with his daughter.... If you haven't read anything on the internet, in the papers, or heard it on the news, then she must be alright. If anything serious happened, the news would be all over it....

 

[ZambeziZelda]

We don't know the background of this family; maybe the little girl has done this before, and usually waiting a few minutes has worked out. Lets not blame the father. I hope the little girl is alright, and judging by the lack of news on the subject, I'm sure she is.

 

[will_hsv]

We don't know the background of this family; maybe the little girl has done this before, and usually waiting a few minutes has worked out. Lets not blame the father. I hope the little girl is alright, and judging by the lack of news on the subject, I'm sure she is.

I have to agree, my wife passes out when she is tired and has not eaten correctly. Something that I have seen many times, however it is very scary to someone who has not seen it happen before.

 

[SANDKRUSER]

I'm sure she was alright - due to the lack of any press on it. Just was wondering if any cast members working there knew anything. I was a little surprised at how calmly the family was handling it. Like I said, I would have been panicking about 5 minutes into it. It was really scary seeing this little girl almost completely lifeless and not responding to anything. The cast members kept coming up and asking if they needed help and the family kept acting like it wasn't a big deal. FINALLY, the dad said, I think we need some medical assistance. When we decided to leave, they did make a big deal about thanking us for our help.

Hey Taryn - I was at EPCOT 3 times and kept an eye out for you. I think I hit EVERY restroom there!:lol:

Crowd level really went up once the F&W Festival started! Overall, but the time we got home, I was surprised at the numbers at all the parks for this time of year. We usually go the 3rd week of October, but the first week was VERY busy! The first 3 days we were there (9/26-9/28), the crowds were great - most things were minor waits - didn't utilize fastpass at all. After that, waited for quite a few attractions, used fastpass a lot.

 

[justducky78]

That is certainly a scary story. I would have been concerned, too. I'm surprised the castmembers waited that long to call for medical assistance (regardless of what the father said). I would think Disney (or any other themepark) would drill it into castmembers heads to call for help immediately - even if the family said no - to avoid any kind of lawsuit. Even if the girl had done this before (passed out and been fine) no company wants to be responsible for not responding quickly enough. You can never be too careful...

I hope the girl was ok. :veryconfu

 

[rbrower]

I hope that she is ok!

 

[FruitSmile]

Heheh what if that little girl was me..

 

[se8472]

she woke up and to my understanding is fine.

 

[WDWCMAmanda]

That is certainly a scary story. I would have been concerned, too. I'm surprised the castmembers waited that long to call for medical assistance (regardless of what the father said). I would think Disney (or any other themepark) would drill it into castmembers heads to call for help immediately - even if the family said no - to avoid any kind of lawsuit. Even if the girl had done this before (passed out and been fine) no company wants to be responsible for not responding quickly enough. You can never be too careful...

I hope the girl was ok. :veryconfu

Just to explaine a little:

As cast member we are trained to ask the guest if they need medical assistance 3 times. Basically, if the guest refuses it...we've done what we can. Obviously the guest may come back later.
I know it may seem weird but that's how we're trained.
Now I've called an emergency unit even if the guests denied it originally out of concern.
It's basically a case by case thing.
If the guest refused it it's probably because she might have had a history of this behavior.

I do hope she's ok though

 

[Scooter]

This girl may suffer from Narcolepsy or Epilepsy or any of many other neurological disorders.

Her parents know her best.
We shouldn't be questioning their judgement unless we know all the facts.
Sounds like the castmembers did exactly what they were trained to do.
I hope this little girl is alright and back enjoying the Parks.

 

[Hakunamatata]

This girl may suffer from Narcolepsy or Epilepsy or any of many other neurological disorders.

Her parents know her best.
We shouldn't be questioning their judgement unless we know all the facts.
Sounds like the castmembers did exactly what they were trained to do.
I hope this little girl is alright and back enjoying the Parks.

I was thinking the same thing. This little girl may have regular episodes, or these types of episodes may be common place for her. The father likely waited the "normal" time period for her to rebound before he requested assistance.

 

[SANDKRUSER]

she woke up and to my understanding is fine.

Hey - thanks - that eases my mind. I'll let my family know. We wondered about her ever since we left them and she still had not woke up.

I believe the castmembers did exactly what they were supposed to do in this instance. They came over at least 4 times and one stood there for quite a while and kept asking the father if he needed anything. One did bring a paper cup of water about 5 minutes into it.

 

[barnum42]

This girl may suffer from Narcolepsy or Epilepsy or any of many other neurological disorders.

Her parents know her best.

I'll second that motion too.

Those who have regular episodes will know best how to deal with it. Such folk will often have a locket or wrist band that will let a first aider know what to do in the event they are found unconscious. These instruction may include a request to not call for an ambulance until a certain period of time has elapsed.

 

[righttrack]

I second the epilepsy/narcolepsy thought. Its possible, in this case, that is exactly what it was. Often people and their families with these conditions know exactly what they are dealing with and how to deal with it. Its often embarassing to them to have been "outed" as a sufferer. The conditions in space mountain (dark) and suddenly hitting bright lights can trigger a seizure. Glad to hear she's ok.

 

[WDWResort]

Wow, I remember when I was in MGM at the RnRC, a girl fainted and started spazzing(sp?) That was very scary. There was nothing no one could've really done. The family was crying and yelling, took about 20 mins. for paramedics to show up. She ended up being okay, she came back to. It was very nerve racking.

 

[barnum42]

Wow, I remember when I was in MGM at the RnRC, a girl fainted and started spazzing(sp?) That was very scary. There was nothing no one could've really done. The family was crying and yelling, took about 20 mins. for paramedics to show up. She ended up being okay, she came back to. It was very nerve racking.

Not meant as an attack on your post, just an FYI: I don't know about in America, but "spazzing" is not the most polite of words this side of the pond.

I would guess that the girl had an epileptic seizure - which can be anything from mild to full out thrashing. Regardless of what has been seen in movies or folklore - if someone has a major fit, all you can really do is, stand back and wait for it to end. If you can get something soft under their head then do it. Otherwise, no holding down or forcing things in their mouths.

Once stopped then basic ABC first aid and check for any medi-alert jewellery.

 

[Hakunamatata]

Not meant as an attack on your post, just an FYI: I don't know about in America, but "spazzing" is not the most polite of words this side of the pond.

Its rated G on this side.:lol:

 

[MommytoMJM]

MJ has epilepsy and we are not fond of the term Spazzing.

 

[justducky78]

Just to explaine a little:

As cast member we are trained to ask the guest if they need medical assistance 3 times. Basically, if the guest refuses it...we've done what we can. Obviously the guest may come back later.
I know it may seem weird but that's how we're trained.
Now I've called an emergency unit even if the guests denied it originally out of concern.
It's basically a case by case thing.
If the guest refused it it's probably because she might have had a history of this behavior.

I do hope she's ok though

Thanks for the info...it's interesting to know how you're trained. I just assumed CM's would be trained to call for paramedics immediately in situations like this (to avoid lawsuits) but I guess not.