Toddler dragged into the water by an alligator at Disney

Essentially, yes, with a few differences.

 

Anyone who lives in the south would understand that, but maybe not someone from Nebraska that isn't used to seeing gators.

And the woods is entirely natural, this was a man made lake (though it is connected to open water ways, I think).

 

Ouch...that does change things.

 

I'm not even sure if the developers/Disney even foresaw the threat, evidenced by the lack of appropriate warnings. But somehow a family from Nebraska is supposed to asses the risk properly?

 

Well they knew there was a general threat, based on the Fish and Wildlife Commission Director's comments yesterday that said they have a working relationship to constantly monitor and remove gators deemed a threat. Traditionally, the gators are afraid of humans, so they only need to be removed if they're too large or when they start venturing in areas that humans usually congregate (like the banks of the lagoon).

Perhaps they didn't foresee the possibility in this area, based on the lack of signs, since it had only a narrow entrance into other waters. Perhaps they thought they could monitor the access and ensure safety.

I mean they went 45 years without an attack. I can't imagine one day somebody suddenly deciding they were needed. Sometimes it takes a random tragic event to bring attention to the issue.

Even if they didn't put up signs going forward, it would probably be another 40 years before there is another gator attack like this. They're just so rare. Like shark attacks.

But yah, a Nebraska family likely isn't going to consider gator threats like we do. We as Houstonians (most of us) are used to seeing gators. I grew up right off the La Quinta golf course in Quail Valley. They would remove gators from lakes on those courses every year and they'd still come back. Sometimes they'd just chill on the greens, despite this, I don't know of any attacks.

 

So I grew up in a suburb of Houston and never saw a gator or heard of anyone else seeing a gator. Nor do I ever think I was told to beware of gators. Maybe that only happens in certain parts of Houston?

 

Well then it seems Disney should have done more, if they knew people were feeding them. Complaints wouldn't necessary mean much, because people could be simply complaining that there are gators. Gators themselves aren't an immediate risk. It's when, like you said, they aren't afraid of humans that they become an immediate threat.

They have signs in the park that say do not feed the gators, I know I've seen signs about feeding animals at Animal Kingdom too.

Visitors likely don't know how dangerous it is to feed the animals. The threat isn't immediately apparent because it's actually desensitizing the animal to human interactions and associating them with food since they're feeding it. Perhaps this event will bring attention to this danger and will change the behavior of some families visiting Disney World. But I still think extra signage out of an abundance of caution are necessary.

I didn't see these specific pictures, but from what I recall and what I've seen on the news, the chairs are about 15 feet from the water. People can move them though, obviously.

 

Really? Perhaps.

We saw them quite frequently in Missouri City. And I've seen them while driving through Sweetwater in Sugar Land.

I just assumed most people experienced this due to the amount of bayous, lakes, and golf courses.

 

Let me rephrase, we didn't see them every day. It wasn't like living along the Nile or something. But we saw them often enough to know that they could be in any lake.

It's part of the reason I don't like swimming in lakes. I don't swim in any water that I can't see my feet, haha.

 

Perhaps I was sheltered, because a quick search definitely shows there were gators sighting where I lived. But yeah, I still contend that from my experience, most Houstonians wouldn't get the proper "alligator education" to prepare them for visiting a place like Florida (or more specifically, Disney World).

 

LOL @ gators in a man made beach open to guests mostly toddlers and kids in disney resort is not an immediate risk

not sure why you're trying too hard to deflect the blame from disney..

when a family goes into a resort and see sand on a man made beach, ever if there are no swimming signs, they might still be tempted to dip their feet

if disney know there were alligators in the water or there might, didn't they think someone might just go in the water or the alligators might just go up to the beach?

people on a vacation who spend money on a resort just want to relax and enjoy..

people who own and manage expensive resorts and entice guests with luxury, relaxment, and fun need to make sure 150% everything is safe.. taking to account guests who may ignore the warning signs or alligators which might get out of the water and attack humans

 

what would you be saying if the toddler drowned during this "relaxment"? weren't swimming and there were no barriers to prevent them reaching the water.

 

Cool I guess I'm the only dumb ass that likes to follow rules. I've wasted all the chances to park in handicapped parking.

 

Being on vacation shouldn't mean turning off your brain though. I think they should have had a sign like this



to make it abundantly clear that there is inherent potential danger playing around in a lake, even a man made lake, in alligator country. That said, hopefully the tragedy of this one child dying is enough to prevent this sort of thing from happening again. This needs to be a learning experience, resorts are still a part of the world and nature can be dangerous. If you are in alligator country, you shouldn't be playing around with small children on the banks of a lake late at night when it's hard to see.

 

I'm not talking about a cheap vacation in the woods or some state park

I'm talking about a $200 a night and up vacation in a Disney resort with a man made beach where families can go and relax and enjoy and not have to worry about snakes or alligators

I agree with nook Disney will cough up significant money to the family of the boy and either make sure those gators don't get into that beach again or put some wire or glass fence around it

A simple sign just won't do

 

FYI the Grand Floridian is more like 500+ a night

 

Case in point

 

I would take the cheap vacation in a Texas state park any day over a $200 a night Disney resort. I personally find the "Disney bubble" super creepy and I don't need anyone to protect me from animals in their own habitat that I have no business messing with.

One thing in Nook's post earlier that disturbed me was that visitors continued to feed the alligators despite Disney telling them not to. I really hate it when people disrespect nature like that and try to anthropomorphize wild animals, be they squirrels or alligators or bears. It endangers the animals and other people.

I also think it's unrealistic to expect Mickey Mouse to build a wall around Central Florida to keep out every alligator and snake.

 

I can only imagine their fake tripadvisor reviews moving forward.

 

It doesn't matter how much you spend, you are still existing in the world and nature is a part of that world. Of course, we could go the route of exterminating alligators entirely and that would largely remove the risk, but I'm not sure animal lovers out there would be down with the eradication of a species simply so people can turn their brains off while on vacation.