It happened to me! Ouch!

[hardcard]

As critical as I am of the 'stupid tourists' and the guests who don't know the magic kingdom isn't 'disney world'... Something I never though possible has happened to me (well my family)..

We just returned this Saturday from our stay at PO:FQ, and the trip couldn't have gone better ..that is.....until friday night...

As we were leaving the food court to head-off to Fantasia Gardens, my daughter was injured, unfortunately due to Disney's Negligence.. as I was originally angry because of what happened.. I am, at this point, just terribly disappointed.

Basically, the event in a nutshell: "We were leaving the foodcourt with the kids, the door was open, the guy in front of my daughter let the door go, and it SLAMMED shut, hitting her in the face (she was a step or so outside at this point), she's only 5 , so reaction time to a something like that is slow..

I was originally upset with the guy, but then I thought about it.. The problem wasn't him.. It was the damn door.. The slow-close mechanisim at the top of the door looked like someone had been swinging from it, and needless to say, the door wasn't slowed at all, and was slamming at a dangerously fast speed.

Events that followed:


- Back to food court, got a bag of ice and a towel to help to swelling/brusing, etc..
- Went to front desk, asked for a manager
- Told manager(s) that I wanted to file an accident report as well as a complaint
- Manager called paramedics to check out my daughter.. and in hind-sight this was a good idea.. her face is pretty red an swollen by this point, and who-knows what is wrong at this point..
- they take-down the information for the accident report, and tell me they will file it with the computer system.. I suppose I'll get a copy by mail, or something..
- As far as the 'complaint' they gave me a card for the WDW Claims office
- paramedics checked her out, said to watch her for a concussion, etc.. and give the ice packs every 10 mins or so (of course to prevent frost bite)

All of this took several (3-4) hours of course.. didn't happen nearly as fast as this post would make it seem..

Anyway, here's the disappointing part.. 2 HOURS AFTER the incident, the door had still NOT been checked, nor was it flagged with caution tape, or locked.. and, of course, it was still broken! Horrible! They should have addressed the problem with that door IMMEDIATELY... As far as I know it is still broken right now.. it was broken the next morning, and I saw no effort to repair it..

If anyone is interested, I'll post a video of the door mech malfunctioning soon (at work at this point ) so you can see for yourselves..


As for my daughter.. shes being her normal self at this point, unfortunately she's got a heck of a set of bruises across the right side of her face, and they won't look so great in the christmas photos ..

anyway guys, aside from that .. it was a great trip... We had one other thing that happens on Jungle Cruise last thursday... it was ....hmm.. interesting... And for fear of getting the skipper in more trouble.. I'll withhold names,gender, and age from my next post..


Until then!

 

[WDWFigment]

That really is too bad... sounds like something definitely should have been done, and someone (or multiple 'someones' dropped the ball on it). At least the trip was otherwise good, but still, you never want something like this to happen.

 

[mousefan1972]

I'm so sorry about what happened to your daughter! As a Mom I know how awful it is when your child gets hurt. I hope she is better soon and that Disney gets their heads out of their you know whats and addresses the situation!

 

[primetime52]

Yikes! I'm sorry that had to happen. I'm really surprised that they weren't alot better about dealing with the situation more quickly and courteously, especially since your daughter is so young.

 

[mickey04]

We had one other thing that happens on Jungle Cruise last thursday... it was ....hmm.. interesting... And for fear of getting the skipper in more trouble.. I'll withhold names,gender, and age from my next post..

Being a skipper, I'm interested to hear about this one. I have an idea of what or who you could be referring to...

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Basically, the event in a nutshell: "We were leaving the foodcourt with the kids, the door was open, the guy in front of my daughter let the door go, and it SLAMMED shut, hitting her in the face (she was a step or so outside at this point), she's only 5 , so reaction time to a something like that is slow..

While I feel sorry for your daughter and her injury (and hope that she has recovered) I'm just wondering why you're blaming Disney. The guy in front let the door go (why isnt he to blame). Why was your daughter so far in front of everyone that someone couldn't stop the door because you're daughters "reaction time to a something like that is slow"
OK, so the hinge may not be working as designed but as a parent I didn't let my five year olds attempt swinging hinged doors by themselves.

 

[bruiser659]

As critical as I am of the 'stupid tourists' and the guests who don't know the magic kingdom isn't 'disney world'... Something I never though possible has happened to me (well my family)..

We just returned this Saturday from our stay at PO:FQ, and the trip couldn't have gone better ..that is.....until friday night...

As we were leaving the food court to head-off to Fantasia Gardens, my daughter was injured, unfortunately due to Disney's Negligence.. as I was originally angry because of what happened.. I am, at this point, just terribly disappointed.

Basically, the event in a nutshell: "We were leaving the foodcourt with the kids, the door was open, the guy in front of my daughter let the door go, and it SLAMMED shut, hitting her in the face (she was a step or so outside at this point), she's only 5 , so reaction time to a something like that is slow..

I was originally upset with the guy, but then I thought about it.. The problem wasn't him.. It was the damn door.. The slow-close mechanisim at the top of the door looked like someone had been swinging from it, and needless to say, the door wasn't slowed at all, and was slamming at a dangerously fast speed.

Events that followed:


- Back to food court, got a bag of ice and a towel to help to swelling/brusing, etc..
- Went to front desk, asked for a manager
- Told manager(s) that I wanted to file an accident report as well as a complaint
- Manager called paramedics to check out my daughter.. and in hind-sight this was a good idea.. her face is pretty red an swollen by this point, and who-knows what is wrong at this point..
- they take-down the information for the accident report, and tell me they will file it with the computer system.. I suppose I'll get a copy by mail, or something..
- As far as the 'complaint' they gave me a card for the WDW Claims office
- paramedics checked her out, said to watch her for a concussion, etc.. and give the ice packs every 10 mins or so (of course to prevent frost bite)

All of this took several (3-4) hours of course.. didn't happen nearly as fast as this post would make it seem..

Anyway, here's the disappointing part.. 2 HOURS AFTER the incident, the door had still NOT been checked, nor was it flagged with caution tape, or locked.. and, of course, it was still broken! Horrible! They should have addressed the problem with that door IMMEDIATELY... As far as I know it is still broken right now.. it was broken the next morning, and I saw no effort to repair it..

If anyone is interested, I'll post a video of the door mech malfunctioning soon (at work at this point ) so you can see for yourselves..


As for my daughter.. shes being her normal self at this point, unfortunately she's got a heck of a set of bruises across the right side of her face, and they won't look so great in the christmas photos ..

anyway guys, aside from that .. it was a great trip... We had one other thing that happens on Jungle Cruise last thursday... it was ....hmm.. interesting... And for fear of getting the skipper in more trouble.. I'll withhold names,gender, and age from my next post..


Until then!

Why was a five year old going out the door without help.not all the doors at disney have stop guards on them.And this is Disneys fault.

 

[hardcard]

http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showthread.php?p=2616330#post2616330

is the post withthe jungle cruise story..

 

[DisneySaint]

Oh my goodness...

 

[hardcard]

While I feel sorry for your daughter and her injury (and hope that she has recovered) I'm just wondering why you're blaming Disney. The guy in front let the door go (why isnt he to blame). Why was your daughter so far in front of everyone that someone couldn't stop the door because you're daughters "reaction time to a something like that is slow"
OK, so the hinge may not be working as designed but as a parent I didn't let my five year olds attempt swinging hinged doors by themselves.

Because the guy in front of me assumed like I did.. That Disney had a properly installed and fully functional slow-close device on the door, and I didn't feel the need to DIVE to catch the door...

I am not going to defend it to you, DISNEY WAS AT FAULT, THE DOOR WAS BROKEN.

 

[MKCP 1985]

Sorry to hear about your daughter's accident. Best wishes for a full recovery.

On every trip, something will go wrong. It happens to all of us. If it isn't a door in the face, it is a mechanical breakdown or a missed connecting flight or someone in the group gets sick or something else. Whether you remember your vacation with fond memories or not depends entirely on how you respond.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

I am not going to defend it to you, DISNEY WAS AT FAULT, THE DOOR WAS BROKEN.

Mmm - attitude problem with a case of possible compensationitis here.

I'm not asking you to defend it to me - but perhaps if you were a little more cautious with a five year old this may have been avoided. Incidentally, why should the guy in front look out for your daughter - he's busy enjoying his own vacation - she's your responsibility

 

[Champion]

Accidents happen. Hope your daughter is ok, but this is something that is NO ONES fault.

I'm sorry that Disney's door maintainance program isn't up to your standards. Do you realize the number of doors they have on property? It has to be some ridiculously staggering number.

As far as it not being fixed right away, well, they need to get someone out to it, and thats not going to happen in an hour. Its not like there is a room of people sitting around to fix stuff immediately if it breaks. And from your description, the door wasn't even really broken to the point where it doesn't work.

As far as your JC story ... that was a complete non event.

Don't know what else to say, but hope your daughter is fine.

 

[jmvd20]

Disney is indeed responsible for the proper maintenance of their facilities and therefore this incident.

Obviously the door in question is heavy enough to warrant the installation of a door closer. By not maintaining the door closer properly they have neglected to keep all safety devices in proper working condition...

Yes, an automatic closer is a safety device and is required by code. S

 

[jmvd20]

I'm sorry that Disney's door maintainance program isn't up to your standards. Do you realize the number of doors they have on property? It has to be some ridiculously staggering number.

Does not matter how many doors they have on property it is still their responsibility to keep everything in a proper working condition.

Do you know how many fire extinguishers they have on property? How about exit signs and emergency lights? Yes, I am including door closers in the same category as fire extinguishers and emergency lights because they are safety devices and are required to be installed and in proper working condition.

 

[scarpiapiano]

While I feel sorry for your daughter and her injury (and hope that she has recovered) I'm just wondering why you're blaming Disney. The guy in front let the door go (why isnt he to blame). Why was your daughter so far in front of everyone that someone couldn't stop the door because you're daughters "reaction time to a something like that is slow"
OK, so the hinge may not be working as designed but as a parent I didn't let my five year olds attempt swinging hinged doors by themselves.

I'm definately not one to "go after" big coorparations but I do think there's some blame to be had on Disney's side. Most big public buildings have door stoppers or slowers (I don't know what the technical term is) for public safety. I can understand a broken hinge may go unnoticed sometimes but when nothing is done to rectify the situation after an accident has happened, that is Disney's bad. I think that I'm a pretty good dad and I know my wife is a great mother. I remember when my daughter was five years old (she's seven now). We did our best to have her in hand all of the time but sometimes kids just get away. I don't think that Disney should award thousands or even hundreds of dollars to this mom. I don't even think that Disney is the only one to blame for the incident but I do think that the complaint is valid and should be addressed with an apology. Disney is held to a higher standard when it comes to public safety. They hold themselves to a higher standard. Personally I want things to continue like that.

 

[scarpiapiano]

As for my daughter.. shes being her normal self at this point

I'm so glad that she seems to be okay now. Years ago, I chipped a tooth just before I played a piano solo with my junior high orchestra. My mom was distressed about how the pictures of the event would turn out. Believe me, give it a few months or so and you'll laugh about the whole thing.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

I'm definately not one to "go after" big coorparations but I do think there's some blame to be had on Disney's side. Most big public buildings have door stoppers or slowers (I don't know what the technical term is) for public safety. I can understand a broken hinge may go unnoticed sometimes but when nothing is done to rectify the situation after an accident has happened, that is Disney's bad. I think that I'm a pretty good dad and I know my wife is a great mother. I remember when my daughter was five years old (she's seven now). We did our best to have her in hand all of the time but sometimes kids just get away. I don't think that Disney should award thousands or even hundreds of dollars to this mom. I don't even think that Disney is the only one to blame for the incident but I do think that the complaint is valid and should be addressed with an apology. Disney is held to a higher standard when it comes to public safety. They hold themselves to a higher standard. Personally I want things to continue like that.

I quite agree - But the poster has blamed everyone (the guy for letting the door go, Disney for failing to notice the door closing too quickly) except themselves. I think a letter from Disney would be more than sufficient

 

[hardcard]

Mmm - attitude problem with a case of possible compensationitis here.

I'm not asking you to defend it to me - but perhaps if you were a little more cautious with a five year old this may have been avoided. Incidentally, why should the guy in front look out for your daughter - he's busy enjoying his own vacation - she's your responsibility

No, I don't have compensationitis.. If I did, I would have called a lawyer.. I am not interested in suing disney into oblivion.. like I said.. I am jsut dissappointed..

but, to respond..

#1. The door closer is disney responsibility.. Just because they have SO many to manage, doesn't mean overlooking to function of one is OK..

#2. The other guy was NOT to blame.. It's common courtesy to hold a door for the person in front of you until they 'take over control'.. But it wasn't necessary on his part, because of the door closer mech... unfortunately for everyone involved, it was not working. and the guy apologised profusely for what happened..

#3. it is MY responsiblity to watch my child, and I was standing less than a foot from her as we all exited the doors.. she was just on the far right side of the action, and took the door handle right into her face.... Trust me, I see parents who let their kids run around and cause havoc all day at the parks and resorts, and it makes me realize just how well-behaved my girls are..

And finally.. A Door closer is required by code on doors of this type (weight/location), to prevent this injury, as well as slamming of hands in heavy doors, etc.. It's a safety component and is NOT optional to have in working order.. Once again, Disney is at fault... Sorry, I am quick to defend them against the wrongful death, and frivilous lawsuits, but this is a case where they are negligent.

 

[hardcard]

I quite agree - But the poster has blamed everyone (the guy for letting the door go, Disney for failing to notice the door closing too quickly) except themselves. I think a letter from Disney would be more than sufficient

The guy was not at fault, Disney was... I've said this multiple times, perhaps you missed it?


as a parent, I blame myself everytime my child is in pain .. I could have done something different... But, again.. I guess you would blame me if a disney truck ran off the street and smashed into my kid, because the breaks failed on the truck, eh? that mechanical safety feature failing woul;dn't be disney's fault either, eh?

Stop being a Disney Fan until the end, and realize that even the mouse can have flaws.