Port Orleans Gator Attack?

[gismo1554]

Thanks all. I doubted this was the case but wanted to check

 

[duckyislost]

Mickey2000 -

Great pic! The part that gives me the willies is that this is just a baby, so there must be a (much bigger) mom in the area. Yikes!

 

[New England]

Ha! I am so dumb! I kept thinking...look at that nice lake why can't we swim in it! I live in New Hampshire so I never thought about a "wild" gator taking a dip!!!

So, since a gator showing up seems to be normal.....what about the lakes that have water sports like water skiing???????

 

[BCV23]

That gator is cute! I hope he made it safely out of the parking lot.

 

[melisjeff]

No. The main reason has to do with bacteria levels in the constantly warm waters. There are a couple of nasty things people have caught in the past in the bacterial soup of ponds there.

I would think if that is the case then the watersikiing and triathlons would not take place. I would like to see the reports of actual disease caused by Disney lakes. They would not allow these activites due to liability. I dought it has to do with bacteria! I know other Florida lakes had issues last year but Disney still held its Triathlon in September and once again this May for the Florida 70.3 Ironman. The Sept Triathlon for 2008 is once again on the calendar.

 

[4cruisin]

Okey dokey then, I was going to book my December trip today until I read this thread and saw the pictures. I don't like snakes or alligators etc. I hope I don't see any while I'm there.

 

[stitchsgrandpa]

Just give a Disney discount to true southerners and they will be selling gator on a stick inside the parks. Deep fried, breaded and with hotsauce.

 

[dmccarty]

People don't take gator's seriously sometimes.

A gator can out run a horse for a short distance.

Don't feed the gator's. Not only is it dangerous its a crime in FLA. Most of the gator attacks are when people are feeding/messing with the gators. There was an attack in the mid/late 90s where a boy was killed near Stuart FLA. We went on a kayak/canoe trip down the river where the boy was killed a few days/weeks prior. A trapper was putting in his boat to go get the gator. We saw the gator a few miles down the river. At this point in the river, the water was crystal clear and the river as no more than 15-20 feet across. Have a very nice picture of the DW in kayak.

I find it hard to believe that the family did not see the gator that killed their son. No place for the gator to hide. I think they where feeding the gator when the gator attacked the boy.

I have seen people helping their little kids feed gators right along the waters edge. The don't realize, somehow, that the gator could snatch either them or their child before they could react. I forgot the exact number but if you see the head of a gator mulitply the size of the head by 3 or so to get the total length of the gator.

My grandparents used to live on a lake in FLA. We swam in that lake constantly during the summer. They pulled a few 8+ feet gators out of that lake. Never had a problem with the gators or the bacteria in the water. There are some microscopic critters one can pick up in warm waters that have killed people. But the odds of that happening are all but zero.

Most trapped gators are killed. The skin is sold for leather and tail meat is used as food. Trappers, not sure about the ones at WDW, are not paid by the state. They make their living on selling the hide and meat. There really is not any place to haul the gators off too and they will return to where they where removed if they can. There is no shortage of gators in FLA anymore.

Don't feed the gators. And keep your distance.

 

[Disney Khi]

I was at POR last week. DH and I had a lengthy conversation about critters with the really nice CM who runs The Fishin' Hole at POR. He said that there had been a few gators on property, of course, as it is Florida. He told a few stories about when they had had to have them removed. He also told us about the one that got away in the brush near the Sassagoula River between POR and DTD. He told us that snakes were a much bigger problem than alligators at the resort. I'm pretty sure that if there had been a recent attack, he would have told us about it. He was pretty candid with his other stories.

BTW, if any of you get to POR, you should go check out The Fishin' Hole and talk to that nice CM. I didn't get his name, but he has worked at POR since it opened and was great fun to talk to.

 

[mickey2000]

Yes he was only a baby and did run to his parents

 

[disneydreamin247]

That was seriously freak me out. I got the creepy crawlies just looking at it!

 

[jenr812]

mickey2000, did you get any pics of his parents?? Yikes!

 

[kribit]

We've seen several gators on Disney property. We had driven through one of the golf courses and there were two just sitting there next to a hole. At first, we were a little freaked but it's just like seeing any other animal in the wild. I certainly wouldn't go near them but I think Disney removes them if they are over 4ft. long.

I think we drove by a fenced location where they put them. Seriously, I'm not sure if that is the case but we did drive by a fenced area on Disney property that had "several" swimming around. I'll have to ask my husband what it was.

 

[collcass]

i just cancelled my kids Pirate cruise after reading this thread. Seriously, the only reason I was able to book this vacation was thinking "it's Disney, there won't be any snakes or gators" Gators scare me but the thought of a snake absolutely makes my stomach turn.

 

[HopperFan]

I would think if that is the case then the watersikiing and triathlons would not take place. I would like to see the reports of actual disease caused by Disney lakes. They would not allow these activites due to liability. I dought it has to do with bacteria! I know other Florida lakes had issues last year but Disney still held its Triathlon in September and once again this May for the Florida 70.3 Ironman. The Sept Triathlon for 2008 is once again on the calendar.

When you do any of these sport events at Disney or anywhere else you sign a huge liability clause that frees them of any responsibility should anything happen - including if you die. Many of the swimmers will be wearing ear and nose plugs.

The bacteria flourishes in shallow warmer water so once they are out in the middle they should be fine. This is the reason why playing or swimming in the water on the beaches is so dangerous. This is where the highest concentrations of the bacteria lives.

 

[jenr812]

i just cancelled my kids Pirate cruise after reading this thread. Seriously, the only reason I was able to book this vacation was thinking "it's Disney, there won't be any snakes or gators" Gators scare me but the thought of a snake absolutely makes my stomach turn.

That makes me sad. My boys loved the Pirate Cruise.

 

[Kevin355]

"The Swamp.....Only Gators get out alive....." A quarter to the first person who knows that what is from....

Anyway, it definitely is a swamp, and there definitely are gators. In fact I saw one on Western Way last week on my way home. Well not on Western Way, but on one of the lakes there, you know what I mean I have not heard of this specific incident, but thats not to say that its not out of the realm of possibility to happen in the future. Note to self: Keep the kids away from lakes at WDW

That quote can be attributed to Steve O. Spurrier...As a Gator Booster and a proud alumni association member, Mick Hubert has also repeated that mantra.

 

[devoted dreamer]

I kept that in mind when booking my resort. Liked the idea of the Beach Resort until my Florida Annual Pass cousin informed me there would be no
swimming in the water because of the alligators. Well, I don't want to explain
how we can play in the sand but not go in the water. Being from NJ that just wouldn't fly. Pools will be just fine for us. Hoping the child attack report is false.

 

[devoted dreamer]

I kept that in mind when booking my resort. Liked the idea of the Beach Resort until my Florida Annual Pass cousin informed me there would be no
swimming in the water because of the alligators. Well, I don't want to explain
how we can play in the sand but not go in the water. Being from NJ that just wouldn't fly. Pools will be just fine for us. Hoping the child attack report is false.

 

[melisjeff]

When you do any of these sport events at Disney or anywhere else you sign a huge liability clause that frees them of any responsibility should anything happen - including if you die. Many of the swimmers will be wearing ear and nose plugs.

The bacteria flourishes in shallow warmer water so once they are out in the middle they should be fine. This is the reason why playing or swimming in the water on the beaches is so dangerous. This is where the highest concentrations of the bacteria lives.

The waiver does nothing in the real world as far a liability goes. If a waiver is all that a site needs to avoid liability then no insurance would be required to host an event or allow water sports on property. Any good attorney can get around a waiver.

Watersports such as waterskiing and wakebording(Sammy Duvall) are far more likely to let bacteria into your body than just swimming. If you ever had a good crash while wakebording you would know how much water gets forced up your nose and into your sinuses. Water sports have gone on in Florida lakes for many generations with little problems. There were some major problems last year but not at Disney lakes. Waiver or not Disney would not allow these events if they had a problem with the water. Just my opinion!!!!

If you have any evidence that the water off of Clementine beach(Fort Wilderness) is contaminated or ever was I would like to see it.