Child’s Body Found After Alligator Attack

The gator grabbed the child as his family watched an outdoor movie at the Grand Floridian resort. Alligators have killed five people in Florida in the last 10 years, according to official state data. Crews removed five gators from the lake during the search, and officials said one could have been the animal that attacked the boy.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. The child’s family, vacationing from Nebraska, was in a sandy beach area at the lagoon when the incident happened.

The boy’s father desperately tried to fight off the gator, suffering lacerations on a hand, but he could not save his son.

He says, “Matt’s family is the light of his life, and his family’s anguish is our own”.

The 2-year-old victim was identified as Lane Graves. When the alligator attacked, his parents, Matt and Melissa Graves, both jumped into the water in an attempt to save him, but were unsuccessful.

Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa is described by Disney as a lavish property combining Victorian elegance with modern sophistication.

Investigators said they killed four alligators while searching for the boy, but that an investigation of the animals’ bodies found no trace of the child.

Experienced alligator trappers, sheriff’s department divers and sonar equipment are being used to search a network of man-made canals, ponds and lakes where the gator may have taken the boy.

“I think most people would reasonably conclude they will get the issue under control and it’s probably safe to go to the parks and resorts”, she said.

“What I can tell you is that Disney has operated for 45 years and they’ve never had this type of thing happen before”, Demings said earlier on Wednesday. He says the theme parks’ wildlife management system works diligently to keep guests safe from dangerous Florida creatures, removing or killing any alligators they find.

“There is a good chance we already have the alligator because we focused our efforts in that proximity, in that area where this incident occurred”, he said, adding that the probe would focus on results of forensic tests and bite marks on the child’s body.

He says the boy’s family “will no question lose a 2-year-old child”.

But Demings also said searchers would continue the effort.

The company announced Wednesday that it’s closing the beaches in “an abundance of caution”.

On Sunday, a gunman opened fire at a gay nightclub in Orlando, leaving 49 people dead in the worst mass shooting in modern USA history.

The night before that attack, singer Christina Grimmie was shot and killed in Orlando, apparently by a deranged fan, while signing autographs after a concert.

The alligator snatched the boy at 9:21 p.m. ET, spokeswoman Rose Silva said, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

There are signs prohibiting swimming at the lagoon but the boy was grabbed while his family relaxed nearby on the shore, authorities said. Sixty officers from the sheriff’s office and Fish and Wildlife Conservation searched for the child.

Ricketts says “no family should ever have to experience such horror” and that he and his wife are praying for them. At a press conference earlier today, Florida authorities said another alligator was found in the man-made body of water.

Alligators are not uncommon in the Seven Seas Lagoon, Wiley said.

Orange County Sheriff’s spokesman Jeff Williamson said at a Wednesday morning news conference that it’s still being considered a search and rescue operation and additional deputies will be joining the search.

Authorities said the boy’s mother tried to rescue him too.

Demings says more than 50 law enforcement personnel are searching the Seven Seas Lagoon for the boy and will keep looking. Demings said there had been no previous attacks at the lagoon, nor any recent reports of “nuisance alligators” in the area.