Gator Drags Boy, 2, Into Lagoon at Disney Resort

Dozens search overnight for Nebraska toddler
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jun 15, 2016 12:15 AM CDT
Updated Jun 15, 2016 4:57 AM CDT
Gator Drags Kid Into Water at Disney Resort
This image taken from video provided by WKMG shows an area near where an alligator dragged a 2-year-old boy into the water near Disney's upscale Grand Floridian Resort & Spa in Orlando, Fla.   (Courtesy WKMG via AP)

Authorities spent the night searching for a child who was dragged into the water by an alligator near Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa in Orlando, Fla. An Orange County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman says the 2-year-old boy was dragged into the Seven Seas Lagoon about 9:30pm Tuesday. The family of five from Nebraska was on vacation and wading in a lake Tuesday evening when the attack happened, Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings told a news conference, per the AP. The father suffered scratches while trying to rescue his son, and the mother also went into the water trying to find the boy, Demings says. More than 50 law enforcement personnel searched the Seven Seas Lagoon overnight, along with an alligator tracker and two marine units.

"The sad reality of it is it's been several hours and we're not likely going to recover a live body," Demings says. He added: "We're not leaving until we recover the child," CNN reports. The sheriff says the attack happened in an area of the Seven Seas Lagoon where "no swimming" signs were clearly posted. Officials estimate that the alligator was up to 7 feet long. ABC7 reports that the lagoon is man-made, but it's stocked with fish and connects to a natural lake. A resort guest says his kids were playing at a beach near the scene earlier on Tuesday. "I'm just here to say a prayer," he tells the Orlando Sentinel. "I can't imagine what those parents are going through. It's been one tough week in Orlando." (More Walt Disney World stories.)

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