Gator Attacks and Kills Child at Disney Resort
This past tuesday night, a 2 year old boy was dragged into Seven Seas Lagoon by an alligator.
The Graves' family was enjoying movie night on the beach at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa. Around 9pm the boy was wading in about a foot of waterin the lagoon according to authorities when he was attacked. Witnesses and the boys parents attempted to save the boy. The father suffered minor hand injuries from attempting to pry the gator's mouth open but to no avail. The child was dragged under and authorities received the call at 9:16pm, responding immediately to the call.
Witnesses say the family was on the beach and the boy's sister was in a playpen about 30 feet away while he was playing in the water. No one but the child was in the water at the time and there are "No Swimming" signs all about the area.
The search began with closing every beach in the resort area and Disney searched with boats and the police.
At 1:45pm the next day, the boy's body was found by the Orange County Dive Team not far from where the attack happened. His body had a few puncture wounds and autopsy has to be done of course but it seems more likely that the child drowned. His body was found in 6 ft of murky water about 15 yards from where it happened.
Jeff Corwin was quoted by CNN.com stating, "The fact that the body was found intact makes sense, said the host of "Ocean Mysteries" on ABC. "That gator came in, grabbed that boy, pulled him, the dad startled that gator, the gator let him go and then the boy drowned," he said. Alligators don't swim that far -- they sink into the murky water and lurk there -- which explains why the father did not see the boy when he jumped into the water to try and save him, Corwin said.
The search led to the team finding and euthanizing 5 gators but they want to make sure they have found the right gator who committed this act.
The boy's parents were identified as Matt and Melissa Graves. The boy was named Lane Graves. The family asks for privacy at this time obviously to mourn their terrible loss.
The Graves' family was enjoying movie night on the beach at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa. Around 9pm the boy was wading in about a foot of waterin the lagoon according to authorities when he was attacked. Witnesses and the boys parents attempted to save the boy. The father suffered minor hand injuries from attempting to pry the gator's mouth open but to no avail. The child was dragged under and authorities received the call at 9:16pm, responding immediately to the call.
Witnesses say the family was on the beach and the boy's sister was in a playpen about 30 feet away while he was playing in the water. No one but the child was in the water at the time and there are "No Swimming" signs all about the area.
The search began with closing every beach in the resort area and Disney searched with boats and the police.
At 1:45pm the next day, the boy's body was found by the Orange County Dive Team not far from where the attack happened. His body had a few puncture wounds and autopsy has to be done of course but it seems more likely that the child drowned. His body was found in 6 ft of murky water about 15 yards from where it happened.
Jeff Corwin was quoted by CNN.com stating, "The fact that the body was found intact makes sense, said the host of "Ocean Mysteries" on ABC. "That gator came in, grabbed that boy, pulled him, the dad startled that gator, the gator let him go and then the boy drowned," he said. Alligators don't swim that far -- they sink into the murky water and lurk there -- which explains why the father did not see the boy when he jumped into the water to try and save him, Corwin said.
The search led to the team finding and euthanizing 5 gators but they want to make sure they have found the right gator who committed this act.
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| Lane Graves |
The boy's parents were identified as Matt and Melissa Graves. The boy was named Lane Graves. The family asks for privacy at this time obviously to mourn their terrible loss.
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