Disney Can Fix It

[gojoe]

This is just my opinion and probably I'm wrong. Close all the beaches at resorts. Hear me out. My daughter attends Eckerd College in St. Petersburg. They have what looks like a beach, palm trees, hammocks and white beach sand with spectacular views of Tampa Bay. There is a retaining wall at waters edge. It's not a beach but it looks like one.

I spoke with my other daughter that lives in Longwood, Fl (north of Orlando) We spoke of this tragedy. She remarked "they were not from this area and may not been aware of the dangers of freshwater in Florida. Also in the dark might not have see the signs". I agreed. Then I reminded her about one night we sat on the beach at Beach Club watching the movie. My youngest granddaughter at the time was about 2 years old and more interested in the water than the movie. I stood with her and my granddaughter at waters edge as she played in the sand. She was never in the water but really it wouldn't have mattered if an alligator attached. I keep thinking of that happy night and how it might have turned tragic. This might prevent this and other tragedies.

I can't imagine the pain this family is feeling. My thoughts are with them.

 

[italiamom]

This is just my opinion and probably I'm wrong. Close all the beaches at resorts. Hear me out. My daughter attends Eckerd College in St. Petersburg. They have what looks like a beach, palm trees, hammocks and white beach sand with spectacular views of Tampa Bay. There is a retaining wall at waters edge. It's not a beach but it looks like one.

I spoke with my other daughter that lives in Longwood, Fl (north of Orlando) We spoke of this tragedy. She remarked "they were not from this area and may not been aware of the dangers of freshwater in Florida. Also in the dark might not have see the signs". I agreed. Then I reminded her about one night we sat on the beach at Beach Club watching the movie. My youngest granddaughter at the time was about 2 years old and more interested in the water than the movie. I stood with her and my granddaughter at waters edge as she played in the sand. She was never in the water but really it wouldn't have mattered if an alligator attached. I keep thinking of that happy night and how it might have turned tragic. This might prevent this and other tragedies.

I can't imagine the pain this family is feeling. My thoughts are with them.

The very same happened to me and my grandson in 2008. It was our first time at Disneyworld, my grandson was about 8 yrs.old. We're from Chicago, no gators here, and i just never thought they were in the water. We were at the Poly in the evening at their beach and he was playing near the water. My God, my first thought was just like yours when i heard this tragedy. Disney needs to make huge signs by these make-shift beaches, "ALLIGATORS IN THESE WATERS, DO NOT GO NEAR THE EDGE OR IN THESE WATERS".
And, put a wall as you said so little children cannot scamper too close.

That poor family, i can only pray for them.

 

[disneysteve]

I see nothing wrong with them putting up a wall at the edge of the beach. You can't (or at least shouldn't) go in the water anyway. As long as it looks okay, I think that would be a good move actually.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

There are also probably creative ways Disney can do it so you don't really notice the wall. Plus adding underwater vegetation at the shoreline would make it hard for gators to get through

 

[disneysteve]

There are also probably creative ways Disney can do it so you don't really notice the wall.

I don't even think they need to be that creative. It doesn't need to be tall or strong. It's not actually a retaining wall - just a barrier. Wooden pylons would blend in and do the job.

 

[Princess Jes]

Could the put nets in the water a few feet in to stop the wildlife? Gator nets? Is that a thing?

Otherwise, any form of physical barrier would do.

I personally wouldn't have an issue with this if it saved even one life.

 

[Tonyz]

Ok, can I just be honest here?

Disney doesn't need to fix anything. If parents are going to let their kid wade through a foot of water at night and ignore all the signs and warnings about staying out of the water, you have to be ready for the consequences. Disney can't foolproof the entire resort... people have to be responsible.

 

[Princess Jes]

Ok, can I just be honest here?

Disney doesn't need to fix anything. If parents are going to let their kid wade through a foot of water at night and ignore all the signs and warnings about staying out of the water, you have to be ready for the consequences. Disney can't foolproof the entire resort... people have to be responsible.

I do agree with you on this also tonyz.
Again, I don't want to blame the parents, things happen, but it's even more sad that this has happened in a place that DOES have warnings.

If an elderly person died because they had a heart attack on a ride that has clear warnings, people would say "they should have taken the warning seriously"

It's a sad thing to have happened, especially considering the warnings in place, but that doesn't bring this poor angel back, and if it means they have to put up walls for those not willing to heed the warnings, then that may just have to be the solution.

 

[Hibernians]

Ok, can I just be honest here?

Disney doesn't need to fix anything. If parents are going to let their kid wade through a foot of water at night and ignore all the signs and warnings about staying out of the water, you have to be ready for the consequences. Disney can't foolproof the entire resort... people have to be responsible.

Are there really signs and warnings about staying out of the water ? I thought the signs said no swimming ?

 

[Princess Jes]

Are there really signs and warnings about staying out of the water ? I thought the signs said no swimming ?

Isn't that 6 to one, half a dozen to another?

 

[Hibernians]

Isn't that 6 to one, half a dozen to another?

No, they are not the same; not even close.

 

[thedonduck]

For those asking about nets, fences and walls... Please be aware alligators can climb and jump. There is so much water in WDW property (and C Fl in general) there is no real way to stop them. If you block by water, they will come by land. We must learn to respect their habitats and instincts instead of trying to force them to follow our rules.

 

[Princess Jes]

No, they are not the same; not even close.

Ok, well to me, personally, if I saw a no swimming sign, I'd assume that means stay out of the water.

 

[rteetz]

I don't even think they need to be that creative. It doesn't need to be tall or strong. It's not actually a retaining wall - just a barrier. Wooden pylons would blend in and do the job.

Gators can climb that though. I am not saying they will but they can climb over such things. Its incredibly hard to completely prevent gators from coming onto land on disney property.

 

[thedonduck]

I don't even think they need to be that creative. It doesn't need to be tall or strong. It's not actually a retaining wall - just a barrier. Wooden pylons would blend in and do the job.

So they skip the wooden pylons and water and walk on by water. Think about how much water is on property and the majority of the water ways are connected.

 

[MolonLabe]

Ok, can I just be honest here?

Disney doesn't need to fix anything. If parents are going to let their kid wade through a foot of water at night and ignore all the signs and warnings about staying out of the water, you have to be ready for the consequences. Disney can't foolproof the entire resort... people have to be responsible.

I agree. This is the first time in FORTY FIVE YEARS a parent has been so negligent that a gator was able to snatch an unattended child.

One time and all of sudden it's an epidemic requiring walls and nets? Let's have some perspective here.

 

[cruisingtwins]

I agree. This is the first time in FORTY FIVE YEARS a parent has been so negligent that a gator was able to snatch an unattended child.

One time and all of sudden it's an epidemic requiring walls and nets? Let's have some perspective here.

The child was not unattended the dad was right there. The walls. fences is more about keeping people out of the water rather than keeping the alligators in.

 

[Hibernians]

Ok, well to me, personally, if I saw a no swimming sign, I'd assume that means stay out of the water.

I completely understand your point of view but swimming is not the same as wading and if you want people to stay out of the water then why not put up signs that say stay out of the water. No swimming signs leaves people to think that its permissible to wade in the water.
Here's a sign that I have often seen on Cape Cod; note that it addresses both swimmers and waders. This is my perspective; swimming and wading are not the same and no swimming to me means no swimming, nothing more.

 

[MolonLabe]

The child was not unattended the dad was right there. The walls. fences is more about keeping people out of the water rather than keeping the alligators in.

20 yards is 60 feet. Hardly "right there". Close enough to run into the water after the child was grabbed? Yep. Close enough to keep the gator away Nope. Sort of like after the baby drowns in the bath tub.. I was just out of arms reach... Not saying they were bad parents, a momentary lapse in judgement? Junior ran off while they were watching the fireworks / boat parade? Personally I wouldn't let my 2 year being playing in central/south Florida lake after dark. Gators or not.

 

[TiggerTrigger]

First off, my heart is absolutely breaking for this family. The news started to surface on this just after I finished watching yesterday's podcast. I've already been a bit of an emotional wreck of late, but those two things together really hit hard.

That being said, while I think more specific/descriptive signs for the dangers are needed and should be highly visible, when you consider the enormity of the spaces in question, I don't think fencing it in any fashion is going to happen. I picture it the way the lagoons were structured in our old house down the shore in NJ (sort of bulkhead style)...still, in order to make it 'more' effective, they have to cover every last bit of waterfront area feeding into the resort areas. It just seems like a project of epic proportion and doing it to just the beach areas isn't enough. The reality is that alligators aren't strictly a water threat. You could "fence-up" the beaches, but they could still be in non-beach areas of property. An inquisitive child exploring could just as easily disrupt a female gator's nest or encroach on a male's territory during mating season...both of which could involve land and/or water. Some might argue that the parents would be to blame, but kids can be fast (even when you are watching them) and gators are even faster. We live close to Brazos Bend State Park in Texas and I can tell you that I won't get near the place during mating season. Even back in my Gainesville, FL days...there were supposedly certain lakes and springs that were considered much safer for swimming, but there was no way you were getting me in that water when it's a given than gators could be in there. Heck, even my neighborhood has gator warnings along the lakes and I won't walk through there at night.

I guess my point is that I think anything too much beyond changing out signs and lighting near the water would just provide a false sense of security. Gators are a part of FL wildlife and it's really easy to forget they're there until the worst happens.