A two-year-old boy pulled by an alligator into a lagoon near a Walt Disney World hotel has been found dead.
The boy, named as Lane Graves, was on the shores of Disney’s five-star Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, in Orlando, Florida with his mother, father and two siblings when the animal dragged him away.
Boats, a helicopter and multiple police officers were involved in the search and a body has now been recovered.
An Orange County dive team found Lane Graves’ body intact at about 1:45 pm, Sheriff Jerry Demings said on Wednesday.
His body had only a few puncture wounds, but he is believed to have been drowned by the alligator. His body was found in six feet of murky water 10 to 15 yards from where he was attacked, according to CNN.
Sheriff Jerry Demings said he had informed parents Matt and Melissa Graves, from Elkhorn, Nebraska.
According to Jeff Corwin, host of ‘Ocean Mysteries’ on ABC, the fact that the body was found intact makes sense.
He told CNN:
That gator came in, grabbed that boy, pulled him, the dad startled that gator, the gator let him go and then the boy drowned.
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.
Walt Disney World shut all of its Florida marinas and beaches as a precaution after the incident, which is the first such death in its 45-year history.
While ‘no swimming’ signs are posted near the water, there are no warnings of alligators.
Our thoughts are with Lane’s family.
