Toddler dragged under water at Disney by alligator

I'm not sympathetic to situations like this. I see no benefit in sugar-coating it.

Well I hope you never bump into this family or they hear your comments - there is a huge difference between not sugar coating and saying something darn right hurtful like the stupid comment about them when they just lost a child.

Disney is to blame.

A "No Swimming" sign was obviously not sufficient. Any reasonable person reading that sign interprets it to mean what it says, and that doesn't include wading.

The entity in the best position to understand the risk of alligators in the lagoon is Disney, not its visitors.

What would it have cost Disney to post a sign warning of alligators?

That they didn't is probably because they don't want to scare guests from congregating near the lagoon. The odds of an alligator attack are very low, but here's one and who know whether a warning sign would have prevented it.

I make a living fighting civil litigation. Should one arise from this tragedy (and surely it will), I would settle it ASAP.

Wading in shallow water is the perfect ambush situation for an alligator. They swim just below the surface with only their eyes and nostrils out of the water and then they lunge at their prey with their mouths open, drag them into the water where they then proceed to spin in circles to tear their prey into swallowable pieces. The thought of a two year old child experiencing that kind of fate is absolutely horrifying.

As for killing the alligators they found so far, it, obviously, was to determine if one had consumed the poor child. At this point the parents should assume that their child is dead, but who here is going to deny them their desire for "closure?"

Once they find the alligator that took the child they can then begin to move others to safer spaces. In the meantime it will be fatal to be an alligator in this lagoon.

We can't blame the killer alligator, or the others in the lagoon, but who wants to volunteer to tell the parents that they have to give up hope?

Yes, hard to exonerate Disney here. From the picture it looks like a beautiful beach, very inviting to vacationers. If Disney didn't think it was safe, why make it look like the perfect beach?

I wonder if Disney is self-insured the way the large entertainment parks are here.

You rarely hear about anything less than death at those parks since they have their own medical facilities/fire squads and have been known to have injured people sign releases for $$$$$ before leaving the grounds. The only way you hear about accidents/injuries is if you know people who have worked in their internal claims and/or legal departments.

seems like that has happened already as the police has announced that it's moved to from search to recovery

They probably are and we probably won't hear about the settlement of this case because they will pay extra to keep it confidential.

And recovery means recovering the child's remains which means killing alligators. So are you ready to volunteer to tell them they are being silly for wanting to bury the remains of their child?

I probably would have told them of the possibility almost immediately. I'm not good at the holding hands stuff.

I'm one of those people that prefers to say dead rather than departed/gone/better place ...

wait ... silly? why do you get the idea I think they're silly to want to recover the remains

I think people are stupid if they're not aware of the risks of alligators if they go to Florida. That's a different thing.

Replace "silly" with "unnecessary" or "immoral," or "stupid" or whatever you please.

Again, I don't blame the alligator and it's a shame that "innocent" alligators are being killed to satisfy the emotional needs of this family, but I understand those needs and to me, at least, they take priority over the lives of the alligators in the lagoon. Obviously you don't have to agree with me on this but you should be willing to explain your point of view to the family (even though that will never be required).

Apparently it is being reported that a resort nearby - the Hyatt Regency has a similar lagoon and they post the alligator warning. Years ago I stayed at this resort for a business convention. I do remember the lagoon and the warning does ring a bell but I can't say for sure.

Many tourists do think that alligators are only in the everglades or alligator alley - unless they see warning signs.

There are lots of things tourists are not familiar with - it doesn't make one stupid - in London for example, they post signs at cross walks to warn you to look left - why? Because many tourists come from places where the traffic is driven on the right side of the road. They aren't stupid just used to looking right when crossing the street.

I am sure Disney's lawyers are all frantically meeting and preparing for this.

We are in agreement

I'm not trying to argue all the fine points about the Grand Floridian, but that hotel/resort sits within the confines of the original site of Disney World. The Seven Seas Lagoon is a man made lagoon and 3 inside hotels all border on Seven Seas with white sand beaches. On one visit we stayed at the Polynesian and could walk out our first floor room right to the lagoon.It was lovely and many of the guests were in the water.

The only thing I know for certain is that the parents will never be the same. What happened yesterday will torment the entire family for as long as they live.

MSNBC just reported that the 2 year old's body has been recovered. The family must be utterly devastated.

It's sad beyond comprehension.

Now they have "closure" though.

It's now up to Disney to make sure this never happens again.

I don't know if anyone ever recovers from such a tragedy. Personally, I think the idea of closure is wishful thinking. Losing a child is soul crushing, watching your 2 year old being dragged away by a predator is a hellish torment I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy.

I'm sure you are right, but it would have been even worse if they didn't recover remains they could lay to rest.

The body was recovered intact, at least they might be relieved that don't have to identify a mauled body. It's just so freaking sad, my son and family are heading to Disney World in October, and my grand daughter is 5 and loves the water. Words just fail me on this terrible loss of a 2 year old.