Heartbreaking news...a big reminder to be aware of wildlife on property

[triplejen]

So many smug posts. Such a lack of empathy. So completely gross.

Specific words mean specific things. No swimming means no swimming. No wading means no wading. No entering the water means no entering the water.

In NYC (where I'm from) there are a million rules about parking. There are signs on every corner letting you know what specifically you cannot do with your car.

"No Parking" signs mean you can't park your car. (As in, put the car in park, turn it off, take out the keys and leave.)
"No Standing" means you can't sit in your car waiting for someone (like if you're picking up a friend and waiting outside their place), even with the car running and the driver present.
"No Stopping" means you can't stop even for a handful seconds to let someone out of your car.

You CAN, however, stop in a "No Standing" zone. and you CAN stand in a "no parking" zone.

If the rule is "don't enter the water because even standing for a few moments ankle-deep while fully dressed (something NO ONE would ever call swimming) is dangerous," then the sign needs to reflect that. "DO NOT ENTER THE WATER" would do nicely. "NO SWIMMING, WADING OR ENTERING THE WATER IN ANY WAY" works too. Or how about ""PLEASE KEEP BACK TWO FEET FROM THE WATER'S EDGE."

Because this child wasn't swimming when he was taken.

 

[NYDisGuy]

Why is that so shocking? Does everyone know every danger in every state and country? (Maybe you do, that is more of a rhetorical question)

Seems like it from the comments. If you are walking down the boardwalk and get snatched then it was your fault because you weren't vigilant and educated enough.

 

[yaya74]

An eye sore would be worth one child's life. If that's what is deemed necessary to prevent this from happening again, I think every parent would be for it.

If you go to the state park, there are bears and snakes. If you go to the beach, there are sharks, Jellyfishs in the water and broken glasses in the sand (like the beach at Coney Island). Children fall from balcony and windows. The lagoon at Disney is NOT a hotel pool. That body of water is untreated, unguarded and is FULL of wild animals... No where is 100% safe. Should we put fences everywhere?? Yes something needs to be done. Disney needs to alert people that there are alligators and snakes and other wild lives in the park, not just in the lagoon. Put up "Alligators in the area" sign by the beach. Disney is at fault for creating a false sense of safety about that beach.

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

I'm reading all the comments about how everyone says, " it's Florida, of course there are gators". So why in the world does Disney put movie night on the beach? If it's such common knowledge to everyone that there are gators everywhere, why does everyone sit on the beaches and watch fireworks?

Attacks like this by gators are extremely rare. They are also probably not assuming that people will be wading a couple of feet into the water where signs are posted not to enter the water. I could imagine them changing those signs from "no swimming" or the like that is being reported to specifically saying that alligators may be / are in those waters, though. They should educate anyone who doesn't know that there is wildlife present -- even in man made lakes. Just horrible.

 

[Mambo Junkie]

Such a sad situation. I feel for the family at this difficult time.

 

[thetallone101]

Can pretty much guarantee that Disney will do away with the movie nights on the beaches now! This will be on my mind for our next trip for sure.

 

[ITALIANNYC]

So many smug posts. Such a lack of empathy. So completely gross.

Specific words mean specific things. No swimming means no swimming. No wading means no wading. No entering the water means no entering the water.

In NYC (where I'm from) there are a million rules about parking. There are signs on every corner letting you know what specifically you cannot do with your car.

"No Parking" signs mean you can't park your car. (As in, put the car in park, turn it off, take out the keys and leave.)
"No Standing" means you can't sit in your car waiting for someone (like if you're picking up a friend and waiting outside their place), even with the car running and the driver present.
"No Stopping" means you can't stop even for a handful seconds to let someone out of your car.

You CAN, however, stop in a "No Standing" zone. and you CAN stand in a "no parking" zone.

If the rule is "don't enter the water because even standing for a few moments ankle-deep while fully dressed (something NO ONE would ever call swimming) is dangerous," then the sign needs to reflect that. "DO NOT ENTER THE WATER" would do nicely. "NO SWIMMING, WADING OR ENTERING THE WATER IN ANY WAY" works too. Or how about ""PLEASE KEEP BACK TWO FEET FROM THE WATER'S EDGE."

Because this child wasn't swimming when he was taken.

You are comparing parking signs.

If I am with a child and it says no swimming. I am not going near it. It's commen sense and knowledge that alligators are all over in Florida. If a sign said alligators next to the no swimming, would that be better? I don't see a difference. The minute someone puts there feet in water that says no swimming, it's not a Disney liability.

No swimming means don't go in, PERIOD.

It's tragic and I feel horrible about what happened, but people blaming signs not being there are wrong imo

Either way a family is going through the most tragic time in their lives. They probably blame themselves for it. It's just horrible.

 

[Shoshana]

Not if I am on the jury.

You wouldn't be selected to be on the jury if you''ve already formed an opinion. And being a member of a jury means listening to all of the evidence without bias.

 

[Gillyrose779]

Can pretty much guarantee that Disney will do away with the movie nights on the beaches now! This will be on my mind for our next trip for sure.

It's true. Understandable but so sad. It was a bucket list item for me- watch a movie on the beach at Beach Club.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

I recall reading a number of threads over the years on this website where people expressed shock that there were snakes at Disney, so I'm not surprised people were unaware there are gators. I've also seen threads on here discussing the fact that there are gators, and that Disney has a policy of removing them once they reach around 4 feet. As others have said, I suspect that a "stay out of water - alligators" sign would have been more forceful, or simply "stay out of water" as opposed to "no swimming." Over the years I've seen kids in both this body of water and Crescent Lake at Yacht Club.

 

[MomTo3PrincessesInNJ]

Attacks like this by gators are extremely rare -- and never happened before in WDW over all these years. They are also probably not assuming that people will be wading a couple of feet into the water where signs are posted not to enter the water. I could imagine them changing those signs from "no swimming" or the like that is being reported to specifically saying that alligators may be / are in those waters, though. Just horrible.

1) This has happened before. Granted it was many years ago, but there's an article linked about a boy being attacked on the beach at Fort Wilderness in the 80's and the wording of the article said nothing about him being IN the water, he was at the waters edge.Luckily his siblings were able to get him out of the gators mouth.

2) There are not signs posted that say "Do Not Enter the Water." The poster a few posts up listed very clearly how important wording is. This boy was NOT swimming when he was attacked.

 

[MrDVC]

Here's something to consider. There are many reasons not to enter a body of water in Florida, especially the further south you venture. The problem for Disney with updating their signs (I don't remember exactly what it says, but it's to the effect of stay out), if you say caution alligators, and someone gets bitten by a snake, they have opened themselves up big time for a lawsuit because Disney alerted me to just look out for alligators.

 

[ITALIANNYC]

I am shocked that people are trying to debate that no swimming doesn't mean you can't walk into the water. Come on now

 

[P'colaBeachBum]

My thoughts and prayers for the family.

I wish every person that comes to Fl whether to our beaches, lakes, or parks inform themselves before visiting. People need to take some personal responsibility. The oceans have sharks, lakes and man made water areas have gators and snakes. Fl has large areas of swamp land. The wildlife has always been here in every part of Fl. Respect it.

I would think WDW will now have to have additional signage.

 

[cckp72]

If I remember correctly, there are - or at least were- danger signs for potential alligators in water at Bonnet Creek when we stayed there last (2012). I think Dinsey might do the same. I don't think it's right to compare alligators to mosquito or love bug bites. Those are nuisances compared to potentially fatal.

Heart is just absolutely broken for this family.

 

[Gillyrose779]

Disney likes to keep everyone in the "bubble" and many are from out of state. I can understand why people would be unaware. Like many have said "No Swimming" is a very vague sign that means different things depending on where you are from.

My husband has many pictures of groups of alligators while golfing in Naples. People still bring their children to golf though. It really is very rare for an alligator to do what this one did. Most who live in FL know they are there, respect them from a distance, but still go about their day.

 

[ArwenMarie]

It's not common sense that alligators are all over Florida. Maybe to Floridians. Yes, most people know there are alligators somewhere in Florida, but as tourists we do not expect them to be everywhere. If you went hiking even 20 miles outside NYC, you could get attacked by a bear. Does everyone in the country know that? Maybe they do.

 

[Pixie Dust ✨]

I am shocked that people are trying to debate that no swimming doesn't mean you can't walk into the water. Come on now

That's exactly what it means. Swimming & wading are different activities.

 

[Hank Scorpio]

If you go to the state park, there are bears and snakes. If you go to the beach, there are sharks, Jellyfishs in the water and broken glasses in the sand (like the beach at Coney Island). Children fall from balcony and windows. The lagoon at Disney is NOT a hotel pool. That body of water is untreated, unguarded and is FULL of wild animals... No where is 100% safe. Should we put fences everywhere?? Yes something needs to be done. Disney needs to alert people that there are alligators and snakes and other wild lives in the park, not just in the lagoon. Put up "Alligators in the area" sign by the beach. Disney is at fault for creating a false sense of safety about that beach.

This.
Further, i haven't heard a clear report about whether the boy was in the water or on the edge. The final update on wdwinfo says on the edge. Other reports says in the water.
But yes, if disney is hosting movie nights on the beach without any warning about watching out for gators or protecting its guests from the same thing, then they are at fault. Disney and the rest of this crowd cannot presume that all guests know to watch out for gators.
The family is from Nebraska... there is a high likelihood they have never seen a gator before.

 

[wdw4rfam]

I am shocked that people are trying to debate that no swimming doesn't mean you can't walk into the water. Come on now

Right, especially since the boy WASNT IN THE WATER AT ALL from every report I've seen