UPDATE: Latest On Continuing Search Effort in Gator Incident at Disney World
The search continues by water and air over the Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake at the Walt Disney World Resort as officials continue to look for a 2-year-old boy who was dragged away by a alligator roughly between 4 and 7 feet long.
Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings stated that the Nebraska family of five was relaxing on the shoreline when the alligator attacked the boy. The father of the boy entered the water and tried to pry the child away from the gator, but was unsuccessful. He had minor scratches on his hands following the encounter.
The parents of the boy then ran to the nearby quiet pool at the resort and alerted a lifeguard of the situation. There are no lifeguards on the beaches as there are a multitude of signs warning guests not to go swimming in the Seven Seas Lagoon. Whether or not the child was in the water when he was attacked is still unclear at this time.
Vice President of Walt Disney World Resort Jacquee Wahler made the following statement:
“Everyone here at the Walt Disney World Resort is devastated by this tragic accident. Our thoughts are with the family,” he said. “We are helping the family and doing everything we can to assist law enforcement.”