Three Yr Old Boy Dies At Wdw !!!!!!

[TwingleMum]

I can't stop crying and all I can think about is my own 3 yr old son.I"m sorry to have to post this but I want to warn everyone. My sister is a 1st grade teacher , one of the other teachers at her school went to Disney Easter week w/her 5 yr old DD and 3 yr old DS. The 3 yr old had a Hot Dog choked on it and DIED. They couldn't dislodge it with heimlich or anything else. And the crowds were so bad the ambulance couldn't get through in time. I m sooo angry and horrified. I mean why did't Disney security clear a path ahead of time for the ambulance??? Why wasn't a nurse there?? I thought each park had first aide stations. I only very recently allowed my son to have hot dogs and then only after I split it down the middle and take the skin off. I know from being an EMT that hot dogs are the just the right size to get stuck in a little throat (think garden hose) but apparently the skin on a hotdog can expand also making it hard to dislodge. My point is don't rely on Disney in a crisis and no hot dogs for little guys.

 

[chelsea&austinsmom]

Very sad.

 

[olena]

Oh dear....

 

[kimmar067]

how awful...my heart goes out to that poor family ...

 

[laceemouse]

Hot dogs can be very dangerous. When we lived in Florida a co-worker of my hubby's had a child choke and die eating one. He was with a baby sitter. I was real blessed, none of my 4 ever choked very easily on anything. Very sad story though, kids are so precious!!! Lacee

 

[eeyore0062]

I think that you are being VERY unfair to Disney. Yes, the child may have choked and that is very sad, but to say that it was the fault of Disney is really not right.

There are 1st aid stations located in all of the parks and they are in very convenient areas, but if the child was not right next to the first aid station it is unlikely that the nurse could have gotten there in time. And to be honest, what could she have done for the child that wasn't already done, if they had already tried the Heimlich and it failed? WDW nurses are not authorized to perform invasive procedures

As for the ambulance... they also take time to get there---- they aren't IN the parks... and as you say, the crowds were huge, and the Security CM's were probably very diligent about making a path, but when you have crowds the size of those at WDW at Spring Break, it is unlikely that the CM's could have gotten there before either the child died or suffered irreparable brain damage. I know from experience that the Staff of WDW is wonderful in a crisis.

Hotdogs slices are not the best idea for toddlers, and especially in an overly exciting and stimulating place as WDW.

I think this is a tragedy, but it was also an unforseeable accident, and we shouldn't be pointing fingers at this time, only showing sympathy for the family of this unfortunate child. I am sure that everything possible was done to save this child.

 

[Girls Scout Leader]

Think of how hard it is to manuver a stroller around in those crowds....an ambulance must be a nightmare. Andthese are the same people who won't pull over on the street to let and ambulance through...well....


SO SORRY it had to happen. Can't imagine the horror the parents are living through.

 

[adamak]

I'm sorry about this. I have no kid, so I never realize how dangerous hot dogs are.

On the same note, it makes me wonder how Disney handle emergency inside the park. If someone in the middle of a very crowded park get a heart attack or something, how do they even get the ambulance in and through the crowd? At least in MK, I would think you can take them down to tunnel. What about the other park?

 

[nativetxn]

How very sad Bless his heart and bless his parents. How terrible.

This happened to Travis when he was three (it wasn't a hot dog--I think it was a bite of apple). I was hysterical, nothing seemed to work to dislodge this. I finally picked him up by his ankles, held him upside down and shook him up and down. Thank God that worked.

I don't know if what I did was dangerous to a child but at that point he was going to die and I knew it--it was the only thing left to try.

Everyone, if this was a bad thing to do, please don't flame me, I was desparate. I'm not saying that anyone should do this to a child

Katholyn

 

[WebmasterAlex]

I think before anyone starts pointing fingers there would have to be a lot of questions answered. How long was it until Disney security was even notified?? You may have as little as six minutes to dislodge it and if it does swell up and is stuck the Heimlech manuver is useless. You need someone that is trained to do a tracheotomy and Nurses can't do that and Paramedics can only in certain areas. Sometimes you can dig it out with a Laryngoscope and forceps but something like a hot dog can be really hard to get out that way. It's possible the ambulance was there in plenty of time but couldn't do anything untill they got to the hospital in which case it would be way too late.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

I'm so sorry for that family. How sad. My prayers are with them.

I didn't hear about this happening, something like this with Disney's apparent neglect as you described it, would have made the news here.

 

[MaryAnnDVC]

How horrible and terribly devastating for the family.

When did this happen? Is there a news article?

 

[jamsmom]

That is so sad for the family.

 

[mom2boys]

How horrible! I cannot imagine what that family must be going through. That said, I can't see how Disney can be blamed. This type of thing can happen anywhere. We are within 10 minutes of 3 different Fire/Rescue stations - in a situation like this, it's wouldn't have been close enough.

My prayers are with the family.

 

[hmp2z]

Unfortunately, it seems to be human nature to rush to the scene of a tragedy, crowding around, rubbernecking, so that those who actually could help aren't allowed to get through.
I'm a teacher, and it happens at least once a week in school. There's a fight, crowds of kids come rushing out of nowhere, and even with all the teachers and security guards working to get through, it takes forever just because of the MASS of people in the way. Every time it happens, I explain to the students why it's wrong and unsafe to rush towards a fight, thus keeping the adults from getting there in the minimum amount of time, but the very next time it happens, there are my kids, right in the middle of the fray.
Maybe (but probably not) this will be a lesson to all those people who rush to goggle at a crime scene, or who create HUGE traffic jams, because they just have to see what happened there. I've seen the ambulances trying to work their way through miles of stopped traffic, and I always hope that it's not a time-critical situation, because if so, all those rubberneckers are responsible for that injured person not getting the help in time.
If you have to blame anyone, blame the curiousity of most humans.
Cheers!
Heather W

 

[Talking Hands]

How very sorry for the family. I do not see that Disney is to blame though. I am sure that they did their best to care for the child in this emergency but couldn't save the child. Unfortunately this happens even at Disney.

 

[dandave]

It is horrible that that happened. I don't see how anyone can blame WDW, however. If they tried the Heimlich and all, then they tried. It doesn't take but a few minutes to suffocate, unfortunately. I doubt the ambulance could have gotten there on time, even with no crowds.

nativetxn, Your post reminded me of my own child. He was around two and eating chicken nuggets. He got a piece stuck in his throat and couldn't breathe. I tried everything, but my child was turning colors and I had to do something very quickly. I <b>know</b> that you should never try to go in after the food, as this can lodge it further. I had no alternative, however. I reached in, dug out the nugget, and he breathed. I was terrified, shaking, and crying, but my child lived. Right or wrong, I did what I had to do. I just thank God that it worked.

 

[RitaZ.]

How terribly sad for that family.

Last year, a middle school student in our city choked on a hot dog at school.

 

[Sandy51]

Exactly when did this happen? I was there Aril 18-26. Didn't hear a thing on the news about it. I was also there in November 2000 when the man was killed on Splash Mountain and that was all over the news. I don't think this could be kept a secret.


Sandy

 

[Briar Rose 7457]

I heard about this from someone who lives in the school district where the mother teaches.


something similar happened to my former secretary's 4 year old nephew. his grandma gave him a hot dog. he started to choke and there was nothing anyone could do.