Florida’s Disney World has fifth death in month confirmed

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Officials say a fifth person has died at Florida’s Disney World resort over the past month, casting a dark cloud over the popular theme park.

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The 54-year-old Disney property in the Orlando area is viewed as one of the most iconic resort complexes in the world. A series of recent tragic events, however, have stung the magical-themed vacation favourite.

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An unidentified guest was reportedly pronounced dead on Nov. 8 at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa in Lake Buena Vista, near the Disney Springs shopping mall, the Orange County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed Wednesday to the New York Post.

“Although there was a death at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort, we declined jurisdiction,” the medical examiner said in a statement, noting the body was turned over to the individual’s personal physician.

Person reported ‘down’ at Saratoga Springs

The news was first reported by a Disney World-focused account on the social-media platform X called “Walt Disney World: Active Calls.” The account tracks real-time activity across the gigantic theme park.

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According to a post on the account, a person was first reported “down” at the Saratoga Springs property at 3:18 p.m. Minutes later, a post on the account reported that the individual was “dead.”

Saratoga Springs is a Victorian-style resort nestled between manicured golf-course greens. There are pools and a spa along with studio and multi-bedroom villas complete with living and dining areas as well as in-room laundry and full kitchens. Some stays cost as much as $2,300 US, according to its website.

No further details about their mysterious death have been released. Disney and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to the Post’s requests for a comment.

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Latest in string of deaths at Orlando-area resort

The first in a series of deaths happened on Oct. 14. Disney superfan Summer Equitz, 31, was found dead at the Contemporary Resort in an apparent suicide hours after she vanished from her Illinois home, local authorities said.

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Days later, police said another guest at the park, identified only as a man in his 60s, died from a pre-existing medical condition at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground on Oct. 21. That incident happened in the 1500 loop, or site Cottontail Curl, which is one of 21 resort-based trails and campsites on the property.

Another tragedy struck the Contemporary Resort on Oct. 23, when authorities said Matthew Alec Cohn, 28, leapt from the 12th floor of the hotel in an apparent suicide. Cohn was an aspiring football referee from Los Angeles, per the Post.

On Nov. 2, a woman in her 40s was found unresponsive at Disney’s Pop Century Resort, a budget hotel connected to Epcot and Hollywood Studios near the Skyliner gondola lift system. She was later pronounced dead.

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Disneyland in California had its own recent tragedy when a visitor died on Oct. 6 after taking a ride through the Haunted Mansion attraction. The woman in her 60s was found unresponsive in a vehicle after the ride finished, Anaheim Fire and Rescue spokesperson Sgt. Matt Sutter told the Orange County Register.

And in June, a mom dodged charges after her daughter plunged into the ocean from a Disney Cruise ship despite the police investigation finding that the woman put her child in “a life-threatening situation” by allowing her to pose for a photograph in a porthole-shaped window.

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