Autopsy results for park deaths confirm Disney not at fault
In June, 4-year-old Daudi Bamuwamye died after riding Mission: Space at Epcot. In August, 12-year-old Jerra Kirby collapsed at Typhoon Lagoon and died. Last week, autopsy results on both were released by the Orange and Osceola County Medical Examiner's office. In both cases, undiscovered heart ailments were the cause of death.
Kirby's death was apparently due to arrhythmia caused by an early-stage viral heart infection. The honor roll student from Newport News, Virginia, had been relaxing near the wave pool at the water park, and passed out shortly after lifeguards had asked her if she was feeling all right.
Bamuwamye apparently died as a result of idiopathic myocardial hypertrophy with fibroelastosis of the left ventricle, or dead scar tissue and abnormally thick muscle walls in his heart. While it is a rare condition in the U.S., according to the medical examiner it affects a third of the children with heart disease in Uganda, the native country of the boy's parents. The heart condition is apparently so severe that those suffering from it are at risk of sudden death throughout their lives.
