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Disney to Post Alligator Warning Signs after Boy's Death

Florida's Walt Disney World plans to put up signs warning of the danger of alligators following the death of a toddler snatched from the shore of a resort lake, U.S. media reported.

"All of our beaches are currently closed, and we are conducting a swift and thorough review of all of our processes and protocols," Walt Disney World Resort Vice President Jacquee Wahler said in a statement Thursday.

"This includes the number, placement and wording of our signage and warnings."

The signs will now explicitly warn of the danger of alligators, the Orlando Sentinel and other U.S. media said, citing unnamed sources "with knowledge of the situation."

There was a no swimming sign at the lakeside beach at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa where the two-year-old boy and his family were staying.

However there were no signs warning about alligators.

The animals are found in large bodies of fresh water across Florida, but they rarely attack humans.

Before this incident, there had only been 22 deaths from unprovoked alligator bites documented in Florida since 1948, according to the Florida fish and wildlife service.

The toddler's father tried frantically to save the child when an alligator snatched him late Tuesday, but could not pry the kid from the animal's jaws.

Divers found the boy's body Wednesday in murky water about six feet (1.8 meters) deep just 10 or 15 yards (meters) from where he was taken.

Disney shut down all of its Florida resort beaches and marinas out of precaution after the incident.

The Grand Floridian is part of the massive Disney resort complex that includes several theme parks, water parks, hotels and golf courses.

Source: Agence France Presse


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