Gator grabs 2 year old at Grand Floridian?

[Clockwork]

Okay but that's not a common thing in Florida.

Sorry Rteetz these are the same variety of gator. In the mating season they can and will be aggressive. They are opportunistic animals and if they feel they can get away with it they can and will do this. One of the main differences between a gator in the wild and a gator in a urban area is that they have lost the fear of humans, due to proximity and more than likely feeding. Sad thing is in this situation no one wins, a toddler is lost, Disney has lost a lot of trust and good will and more than likely more gators will lose there lives because of this.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

if there's a thunderstorm on the beach, movie night is cancelled. No sign needed.
But signage should not be a negative. They can warn us however they wish to, and that should include proper postings around high risk areas.

But what about the people that are not aware and decide to wade in the water? Or during the day go golfing?

MG

 

[rteetz]

Sorry Rteetz these are the same variety of gator. In the mating season they can and will be aggressive. They are opportunistic animals and if they feel they can get away with it they can and will do this. One of the main differences between a gator in the wild and a gator in a urban area is that they have lost the fear of humans, due to proximity and more than likely feeding. Sad thing is in this situation no one wins, a toddler is lost, Disney has lost a lot of trust and good will and ,ore than likely more gators will lose there lives because of this.

I'm just going off the alligator facts in the CNN article. It's not a common thing for gators to attack far off the shoreline. It's definitely possible but I don't understand people saying you should not be allowed on beaches.

 

[Delgado]

I never said its natural that the child died. You are putting words in my mouth.

Removing hammocks from the beach isn't going to prevent an attack. I don't understand that comment.

Then you didnt read the comment.

 

[Metalliman98]

I agree I don't think much will change other than signage.

I hope you are right, as we are staying at the poly villas in March. But i fear the unruly, irrational mob will force them to do more than that.

 

[Delgado]

If no one should be on a beach. All beaches in the world should be closed including beaches along the oceans because there could be shark attacks. Beaches are not the problem.

Nope. Youre missing the fact of where it happened.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

People sometimes swim in the water despite the signs. People also feed alligators which is illegal. Signs don't always prevent everything.

No they don't.... It's more a cya thing.

MG

 

[rteetz]

Then you didnt read the comment.

I did.

 

[Delgado]

Lol when did I say I was gonna cry over no beach activities? You're in Florida, there's gators around. Its just the natural way of life there. Now possibly there should've been some better signage I can buy that. But you're blasting a poster for the "natural cycle of life" when that's not at all what he was trying to say.

Also alligators come out of the water? No kidding, but typically NOT to feed. There's exceptions to every rule of course.

Again your common knowledge tella you there were gators around. AGAIN, not everyones does.

 

[Delgado]

I did.

Then you didnt miss the part about children on the sand. Were going to have to agree to disagree then.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Yes, of course. Lightning is worldwide, and alligators are generally confined to certain areas, but it's totally the same thing.

But, but.... People may assume they are safe because they're in the bubble...???

MG

 

[rteetz]

Nope. Youre missing the fact of where it happened.

Yes it happened in inches of water on the shoreline. Yes there should be signs saying to not go in the water. However you should still be allowed on the beaches.

 

[umichigan10]

Again your common knowledge tella you there were gators around. AGAIN, not everyones does.

And I've admitted there probably should've been signs, and most likely will be. But i think all parties are culpable to an extent. I don't honestly get the point you're trying to make tbh

 

[Mac30188]

The number of questions that Disney has coming out of this is huge, with an enormous pressure from the legal department to answer them quickly. Unfortunately probably number 1 most important question is "Did they catch the right alligator?" That is hugely important as the worst of all possible future scenarios is another child is attacked and killed by the same gator.

just a few Disney Questions that will certainly be weighing on their minds this week. I am sure there are 50 more.

1) Did they catch the right Alligator?
2) What can they do to make this right for the family?
3) What should the new signs look like and how many?
4) Do they close the beaches forever or increase safety mechanisms to keep gators away?
5) Do they install a significant amount of lights and fences along the shore?
6) How do they keep people from approaching shore around firework time?
7) Do they increase security patrols around waterfronts/shorelines to keep guests from violating signs?
8) Do they continue to have the water pageant?
9) Does it make sense to continue with any sort of Disney press releases until the confirmation of the alligator being caught? (i.e. it may come off in poor taste to release a huge new campaign to increase sales in the same breath as you say, and we still don't have the alligator yet.)
10) Do we release packages on June 17th if the Alligator is not caught yet?
11) How do address guests about the threat of wildlife? Do they increase wildlife notifications to the point that it frightens guests?
12) What about other types of wildlife threats?
13) Do they have to address areas in WDW other than Seven Seas Lagoon?

 

[Clockwork]

I'm just going off the alligator facts in the CNN article. It's not a common thing for gators to attack far off the shoreline. It's definitely possible but I don't understand people saying you should not be allowed on beaches.

I don't disagree, with proper precautions they should be allowed, I would probably rope the area off during mating season though and I would also post signs. I think Disney will become more proactive and remove smaller gators now too. It was an accident and sometimes no one is at fault in a accident. A child was doing what a child does play, a gator was doing what a gator does eats. It's truly sad that the poor kid was at the wrong place at the wrong time. Could Disney have done more to warn people in hindsight,yes, and I'm sure they are just as mad at themselves as some of the people here at them. If Disney does the right thing and takes the necessary precautions, then lesson learned, it's just sad that it had to learned this way. I feel for both sides right now as a parent I don't know how I could handle this.

 

[mshanson3121]

They were wadding in approximately one to 2 feet of water per intial press conference, a foot of water is roughly chest deep on a toddler to me that classifies as swimming.

What sort of miniature toddler do you have that 1' of water is chest deep??
Considering the average height of a 2 year old is 33-36" tall, 1' of water wouldn't even reach their waist.

 

[cgh]

As I have tried to wrestle of the legal ramifications of this in my head, I tend to believe Disney has an uphill battle as there are several points that will be used against them.

1) There is no right answer to the sure to be requested answer to, "How many gators do you pull out of the Seven Seas Lagoon?" - If they say 2, they will be blasted for being negligent in trying to resolve the problem (i.e. they put profits over this boy's life). If they say 1,000, they will be blasted on why do they have an entertainment area so close to such a dangerous area. There is no correct answer for Disney and it will all look bad.

2) Disney encourages people to be on the beach at night. - There is no denying that Disney considers the beach a night time entertainment area.

3) The beach is poorly lit. - Since most of the night time activities (fireworks, water pageant) thrive in lower lights, it makes sense that Disney would not focus on extreme lighting on the beach.

4) Wading versus Swimming - Even the police officer made the distinction of them being different. While you could say that common sense should have dictated an assumption of danger, that won't hold up well in court.

5) Not a Local Family - I am guessing there are no alligators in the State of Nebraska. Regardless on there true knowledge, the prosecution can always present that the nature of alligators just was not known to the victims.

There was a great picture earlier in this post that sent shivers down my spine of a little girl playing by herself with her back turned to the shore playing near murky water with a very generic no-swimming sign. That picture was the nail in the coffin for me. It sent shivers down my spine. There was no denying that the girl was happily having fun in an entertainment area with no real fear or knowledge of what dangers could be lurking a few feat offshore. It was exactly what Disney wanted. Unfortunately an astronomically improbably event occurred that resulted in a horrific tragedy. Due to the violent nature of the event it repaints that entire picture as eerily dangerous. There is no way that a parent or Disney really would believe this type of event was going to occur. From a legal standpoint this is going to come down to Disney is responsible for ensuring that entertainment areas are safe. They should have been looking out for the guest and anticipating this tragedy. Legally this will be...Disney encourages families from all over the world to entertain at night in a poorly lit entertainment area a few feet from a lake they know contains lethal predators without adequately warning the guests of the dangers they are subjected to by being in that area.

I haven't read everything but I agree here. I'm forgetting the legal term is it 'attractive nuisance?' (any lawyers here?) For attractive nuisance, there are some places inherently dangerous that attract children (ie. a pit for building a house, construction sites, in general) Due to the attractiveness, those areas need to be protected. They have a seashore that is inviting, they don't warn about gators, they know guests are coming from ALL over the world. Is there any cautionary information about gators anywhere? It is Disney. There is an expectation of safety at Disney. It is the cream of the crop. Is it foreseeable that a young child might want to splash in a tiny bit of water? Absolutely. Wet sand? Oh-soooo much fun for little ones. I don't think this will go to court but Disney will settle. There is lot of an attorney to go on.

 

[Metalliman98]

You know, I'm thinking, in addition to the gators, the sand on those beaches can get mighty hot on a warm day. We wouldn't want anyone to burn their feet, so we should probably put a sign up....or on second thought just close the beaches entirely, to be safe.

Probably want to pull all coffee makers out of the room too, since hot coffee can lead to scalding burns, as scientists have just informed me.

Better shut off all hot water sources to the rooms too, just to be safe.

While we're at it, shut off all water so no one drowns in the tub. Can't be too careful.

 

[cgh]

I thought it was 6 inches-1 foot?

 

[Maistre Gracey]

I don't know where that came from but from the news conferences I have watched they said the child was in water around there ankles.

I also heard a foot of water..

MG