Man dies in fall from Disney World deluxe resort balcony: police
Police in Florida say a man was found dead this week at Walt Disney World’s Contemporary Resort, located next to the popular Magic Kingdom theme park.
The victim, identified by the Orange County Medical Examiner as 39-year-old Jeffery Vanden Boom of Greendale, Wisconsin, died from blunt force trauma in what has been ruled as an accidental fall from a hotel room balcony.
In a statement to Fox News Digital on Friday, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said, "On July 26, 2023 at 5:33 a.m., deputies responded to the Contemporary Resort after a call came in about a man found unresponsive on the hotel grounds."
"He was pronounced deceased on scene," the sheriff’s office said.
Disney did not respond Friday to multiple requests for comment from Fox News Digital.
Reports on social media from users claiming to be staying at the Florida property at the time said the fifth-floor sky bridge connecting the Bay Lake Tower to the main building at the Contemporary Resort was closed off as police investigated the area.
A man was found dead this week on the grounds of the Contemporary Resort at Walt Disney World, Florida police say. (Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket via Getty Images)
"I'm pretty sure someone just died at our hotel... we got a call at 7:30 someone had a medical emergency and not to go on the balconies and then they had people redirecting us," wrote a Reddit user. "And then we went outside and there's a tent set up right under a balcony and it's all taped up."
Last year, an 83-year-old Florida veteran died after riding an amusement at Walt Disney World, the Orange County Sheriff's Office said.
An incident report says that on Sept. 25, 2022, Joseph A. Masters and his wife Alice were riding the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover in the Magic Kingdom when he fainted.
Authorities say his wife started to panic as she asked for help and attempted to call other family members. As the ride came to its end, Disney staff and security responded to the scene, where CPR was initiated, the report states.
Disney did not respond Friday to multiple requests for comment from Fox News Digital about the death Wednesday at the Contemporary Resort. (Brian Carlson/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Masters was taken to Celebration Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
"I tell everybody now that my husband died in his happy place because he loved Disney," Alice reportedly told the Orlando Sentinel.
Masters had a pacemaker implanted and had been previously diagnosed with an extensive list of medical conditions, including diabetes and hypertension. Further evaluation by doctors revealed that he had a large blockage of an artery near his heart.
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