Every year, just under 1% of the population dies in the U.S. More specifically, out of 100,000 people in the U.S., about 800 will die that year. If 100,000 visitors hit Disney World every day, about 2.2 of those visitors would be expected to die that very day (800 divided by 365 = 2.2). Now, that's not what will happen because most of the people in the U.S. who pass away are suffering in hospitals, nursing homes, or hospice, or are otherwise too sick to travel. Nevertheless, I do not believe it is at all an unusual occurrence for someone to die on vacation when they are subject to unfamiliar experiences, food, or habits. Even flying can trigger various ailments including deadly blood clots.
We have been on 7 Disney cruises, and the death of a passenger is announced shipwide for whatever maritime law reason. It happened once while we were onboard. Assuming 30 days on ships which contain about 2,500 passengers, (that's 75,000 passenger days) eventually it is going to happen for natural or unnatural reasons. Hang out with 2,500 people for a month, and one is bound to go.
Bottom line, people die at Disney mostly because of two reasons: (1) Bad timing; or (2) Out of routine. Are Mission Space or Big Thunder Bucket inherently dangerous? I don't think so, but obviously the experience can stress the body and trigger certain biological events that can cause a premature passing, just as athletes die every year at practice or in games. It's sad, of course, but the only way to 100% protect people is to shut down the parks because some tragic fluky event might happen to someone with a hidden health problem. America will not deny millions of people a great vacation because a handful of vulnerable individuals might get hurt.
And face it, we all might have a hidden health problem, and we all probably fit some risk category. I had a heart rhythm problem one day in my 19,000 days on this Earth. I spent a couple hours in the ER, and then went home. Should I be barred from riding? Of course not. But if I happen to die on the teacups, many will say the attraction is dangerous and should be closed. Others will say I was high risk and never should have been on there in the first place. They are all wrong. Life = risk. Stop worrying about the extremely remote dangers and live life to its fullest. Tragically, 2 people died on Mission Space. Warnings are posted. That should be enough, but the risk will be there. Eventually, the most benign rides will have someone die on them.
