Florida Man Sues Disney Claiming 'Severe and Permanent Injuries' After Falling Off Magic Kingdom Ride
Oftentimes, when the phrase “Florida Man” leads off a story, you can expect something strange and bizarre.
This story is no different as a Florida man has sued the Walt Disney Company over some alarming and damning allegations — and yet is seeking less than the annual salary of some rank-and-file hourly Disney World employees.
To wit, a man from Orange County, Florida, is suing Disney after he claims he suffered “severe and permanent injuries” while visiting the park’s Magic Kingdom.
The lawsuit was filed last month.
According to WOFL, Billy Williams is suing Disney after an incident in April 2022 while attempting to get on the “Haunted Mansion” ride.
For the unaware, that attraction is on a perpetually moving track, so when it’s time to board your vehicle, you actually have to walk alongside it as it’s moving. It’s like trying to get into a moving vehicle, but taken down several thousand notches.
Williams claims that while trying to get on one of these moving carriages with his wife, a Disney employee abruptly hit the emergency stop button.
The stop button allegedly caused a sudden and unexpected jolt on the ride, throwing Williams to the ground and causing said injuries.
WOFL notes that Williams is seeking $50,000 in damages from Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, US, Inc.
Williams’ lawsuit alleges that the theme park was negligent for “failing to maintain the premises in a reasonable safe condition,” and failed to correct or make him aware of the situation.
Given the severity of the alleged injuries, the $50,000 figure is a peculiar one.
A company the size of Disney can lose more than $50,000 from clerical errors alone.
But whether Williams is suppressing that figure for pragmatic reasons or other reasons, it’s still a bad look for an entertainment titan that is on wobbly knees at the moment.
While much attention has deservedly been given to Disney’s flailing movie studios, things haven’t been much rosier in the parks or streaming service world (where the company recently decided that a $50 million show was worth more as a tax write-off than as an actual product featured on Disney+.)
As for the parks, due to a likely combination of inflation and visiting costs, Disney has seen a sharp drop in attendance. This phenomena was particularly noticeable on July 4th.
Perhaps explaining away part of the actual attendance, stories like Williams’ are not exactly uncommon either.
There was a harrowing report from earlier this year where Disney employees were alleged to have laughed at someone who got injured on a ride — and the person eventually died.
Given all the above, the House of Mouse is currently embroiled in a particularly ugly round of (global) layoffs.
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