Three deaths in 7 weeks: What’s happening at Disney World?
With family travel budgets tighter than Minnie Mouse’s pucker, this is no time to fuck around with public image. So what’s going wrong at Disney World?
The Florida theme park has been witness to three fatal accidents in less than two months. In July, the world-famous monorail saw its first fatality when two cars collided. Then, on August 10, a performer named Mark Priest slipped and cracked his head while performing in Captain Jack’s Pirate Tutorial. According to Sky News, Priest “joked about his condition when he was taken to hospital but deteriorated rapidly and died.”
Yesterday, Disney nailed the hat trick:
Anislav Varbanov suffered head injuries while practising a tumbling roll for the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular in the Hollywood Studios section of the Florida resort.
“We lost a valued cast member and our thoughts are with his family, friends and co-workers as they mourn his passing,” Disney said in a statement released to local news channel Fox 35.
The live show, which recreates scenes from the film Raiders Of The Lost Ark, will not go ahead on Tuesday as a mark of respect for Mr Varbanov.
The stunt performers are involved in fight and fire scenes, chases and explosions, as well as acrobatics on a motorbike and plane.
At least Disney’s corporate communications department is getting the hang of commenting on fatal accidents. Note the language used in the statement for Varbanov’s death: “We lost a valued cast member and our thoughts are with his family, friends and co-workers as they mourn his passing.”
In the aftermath of the monorail crash, Disney World’s vice president of public affairs, Mike Griffin, had this to say: “Today, we mourn the loss of our fellow cast member. Our hearts go out to his family and to those who have lost a friend and co-worker.”
They may have forgotten how to run a safe theme park, but at least Disney brass remembers how to stay on-message.
Disney World cast member dies after hitting head on wall during sword fighting show | Examiner.com.
Disney Train Driver Dies In Theme Park Crash | Sky News.
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[...] Honestly, I’d like to see the fine print in this contract. Will Disney also be acquiring Stan Lee’s closely guarded formula for adamantium steel? Will they make the Disney World monorail out of it so that there will never again be a deadly crash? [...]