Cruise and Theme Park Operational Updates due to Coronavirus

[Mzpalmtree]

The problem with WDW is that they will have the same problem as NYC when it comes to the buses and monorail..but the Skyliner would be okay, maybe.

I think the skyliner would be just as bad as the buses and monorail unless they limited them to only those in a traveling party and disinfected between each use which I can’t see them doing because it would cause the cars to have to wait too long between boarding.

 

[HuskieJohn]

I just don’t see litigation:

1) If someone goes to WDW they are going voluntarily and they know the risks.

2) How do you definitively prove the person caught Coronavirus at WDW?

What about the full time CMs? Are they voluntarily working?

WDW/DL being open should be thought as a workers health & safety issue before a guest health & safety issue.

 

[jlwhitney]

I think the skyliner would be just as bad as the buses and monorail unless they limited them to only those in a traveling party and disinfected between each use which I can’t see them doing because it would cause the cars to have to wait too long between boarding.

You don;t stick your hands in your mouth and on your face you aren't going to get it, assuming its ever proven it will for sure transmit that way (which they haven't, all they know is it can be found on the surfaces for certain periods of time)....now to get small children to not lick everything that may be harder...LOL

 

[Aurora0427]

I would say pretty good! https://www.marketwatch.com/articles/bob-iger-on-disney-after-coronoavirus-51586252700
Bob Iger: For DIsney parks to reopen, may need to start doing temperature checks of visitors.

This is so not effective.... just this morning there was news out of China that epidemiologists and doctors there think up to 80% of people were infected by asymptomatic carriers. This is wishful thinking on Iger’s behalf.... and would only serve to make it appear that Disney is “safe”.

 

[J-BOY]

Not only that but, again, the biggest problem with Covid is that many infected people are asymptomatic and not only that, for those who do become symptomatic, they're contagious before they become so. So... temperature checks really are pointless. They might catch a few people, while letting dozens of other contagious people through. It's just a PR move to make people feel like they're actually doing something.

That's entirely true, and they'll still do it. It's the same as the "security" they have set up. No doubt it's great for peace of mind, but many people would have no issue getting through with a weapon if they really wanted.

 

[Jrb1979]

And those numbers are reflective that those applying yesterday were born in January, February or March.

There will be more applications every day this week based on birth month..
today - April, May & June
tomorrow - July, August & September
Thursday - October, November & December

those who couldn’t get through can apply anytime Friday or over the weekend - it will go this way until all who require assistance are able to get their application in.

A staggering number by the time all is said & done...

Yes it's going to a lot of people. Its up to almost 1 million now. That's a lot of people that won't be taking a vacation let alone a Disney one any time soon. I know some will have Disney vacations already booked but there will be lots that won't be able to afford it.

 

[xuxa777]

This is so not effective.... just this morning there was news out of China that epidemiologists and doctors there think up to 80% of people were infected by asymptomatic carriers. This is wishful thinking on Iger’s behalf.... and would only serve to make it appear that Disney is “safe”.

Yet China mandates temperature checks for businesses, travel and restaurants, it is effective, not 100%, but effective.

Even here the CDC's recommendation to wear a mask is not to protect the mask wearer, it is to keep people from spreading it by coughing and sneezing on surfaces or on each other if not able to maintain 6 ft separation.

 

[JeannieE]

How can you rely on temperatures taken in summer heat? As many have already said, there are a variety of reasons the temperature reading would be incorrect.

 

[TDSAXX]

What about the full time CMs? Are they voluntarily working?

Well, technically yes they are. Slavery was outlawed in this country over 150 years ago. But my original post was about litigation from customers.
The reality is places are going to reopen and each individual is going to have to decide the risk level they are comfortable with.

 

[havoc315]

I just don’t see litigation:

1) If someone goes to WDW they are going voluntarily and they know the risks.

2) How do you definitively prove the person caught Coronavirus at WDW?

As a lawyer, I see similar litigation all the time. Earlier in my career, I did some work with Asbestos litigation which was even broader.

If you got lung cancer... you could sue employers from 10 years earlier, if that employer 10 years earlier exposed you to asbestos.
That you were exposed to asbestos.... and that you later developed lung cancer, that was enough to establish that the asbestos at the job caused the lung cancer.

People "assume risks" and still retain the right to sue all the time. If you go to the grocery store, you know there is a risk of spilled messes in the aisles. But lawsuits of slipping on spilled messes are extremely common.

So applying this to Disney:

If Disney has a mini pandemic... a couple hundred people get infected from Coronavirus, showing symptoms 5-10 days after being at Disney World... a dozen of them die..... That would be ample proof that they got the infection at Disney.
You don't have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt. You just have to prove "more likely than not." Basically, if there is a 51% chance you got the infection at Disney, then that's enough to win a case against Disney.

But then we get into knowing the "risks."
Let me get to the supermarket example:
If a mess gets spilled, but there is no policy of quickly cleaning it up, placing cones around the mess, etc... then the grocery story will face liability. If a kid knocks over a pickle jar, it breaks and spills, and someone slips 3 seconds later... The grocery store will not face liability. The question is whether reasonable steps were taken. Bad things can happen even if you take reasonable steps. But you have to take the reasonable steps to reduce risk. That's the legal standard of care.

Applying this to Covid:
What are other institutions doing to reduce Coronavirus risk? We know theme parks in China are requiring temperature checks, they are requiring masks, closing high density attractions.
If Disney decides to maximize profits by packing people in like sardines, while their own internal health care advisers are warning of health risks, then they would face enormous legal exposure.

 

[Aurora0427]

Yet China mandates temperature checks for businesses, travel and restaurants, it is effective, not 100%, but effective.

Even here the CDC's recommendation to wear a mask is not to protect the mask wearer, it is to keep people from spreading it by coughing and sneezing on surfaces or on each other if not able to maintain 6 ft separation.

It’s been partially effective in China for other viruses.... How in the world does taking people’s temperatures for a virus that has so many asymptomatic carriers that effective in a theme park setting? It’s not. It’s smoke and mirrors to make people feel safe. If you are so sick from COVID that you’re running a temperature, you are not at Disney World. You are very sick at home in bed. It’s the asymptomatic carriers that are the threat in this type of setting.
I agree that wearing masks helps prevent asymptomatic carriers from spreading the virus.... however I wore a mask for 30 minutes yesterday when I did curbside pickup at the grocery store. In 56 degree weather in San Diego. I literally cannot imagine wearing a mask at WDW in August all day while at the parks. Misery.

Quite frankly people just need to accept that you won’t be safe from this virus at WDW until there’s a vaccine, it goes dormant (wishful thinking), or they develop an effective treatment. If Disney opens before a vaccine, it’s go at your own risk. Some people are ok with that and will accept the risk and go, some won’t and won’t go. Let’s not fool ourselves by thinking temperature checks are going to make the parks safe.

 

[havoc315]

Yet China mandates temperature checks for businesses, travel and restaurants, it is effective, not 100%, but effective.

Even here the CDC's recommendation to wear a mask is not to protect the mask wearer, it is to keep people from spreading it by coughing and sneezing on surfaces or on each other if not able to maintain 6 ft separation.

We know the measures being taken by South Korea and China that are WORKING.

Yet, somehow, there is a chorus of people here saying, "those measures would never work and therefore we might as well not do anything."

 

[jerry557]

And you aren't going to have an immediate flood of people. You aren't going to have a situation where you see massive crowds. I think WDW is going to be quite dead and slow for quite a long time. I remember the parks closed after 9/11, and when they reopened, it was dead for weeks. Today, a lot of people are out of work. Even people who have a job, it's all screwed up. Everyone's travel plans are disrupted. The airlines are a mess and have even suspended routes because of lack of use. A lot of people already moved their vacations to the fall or later. Not to mention a lot of attractions and experiences will likely not be open for awhile. Many will also still be afraid of the virus and won't go.

So Disney is not going to be a draw for a ton of people for awhile anyway.

There is going to be a lot of changes. There will be a lot of capacity limits. No more crowding into the buses or monorails like sardines. There will likely be new rules on that in place for maybe permanently. That may be a new challenge they will have to figure out. It may be better (and safer) driving yourself around around Disney World for awhile.

 

[havoc315]

Let's be clear... there are 3 choices:

1. Keep the parks closed for about 9 months to 3 years. At the short end, keeping it closed to the world crushes the virus through social distancing and/or extremely effective therapies are widely available and/or there is herd immunity. On the long end, after an effective vaccine is spread through the entire world.

2. Just throw open the parks normally after the "numbers" have retreated. This poses the high risk of numbers suddenly skyrocketing again. Disney could become a Mardis Gras like epicenter.

3. Open with restrictions to reduce risk. Temperature checks, masks. other restrictions.

Option 1 might ultimately be required but it would likely bankrupt Disney.
Option 2 would be pure stupidity.
Thus, option 3 is the most feasible option. Exactly what restrictions would be implemented can include a broad range of things. But temperature checks, already being done in many parts of the world, would almost certainly be part of it.

 

[Twilghtsprkle]

This is so not effective.... just this morning there was news out of China that epidemiologists and doctors there think up to 80% of people were infected by asymptomatic carriers. This is wishful thinking on Iger’s behalf.... and would only serve to make it appear that Disney is “safe”.

You wouldn’t catch people who have lower temperatures normally. Not everyone has a base temp of 98.6, mine is 97. Add someone taking a fever reducer and your temperature checks are worthless.

 

[J-BOY]

If you are so sick from COVID that you’re running a temperature, you are not at Disney World. You are very sick at home in bed.

I agree with the rest of your post, except for this part. There's literally another thread on this same board about a guy who potentially visited Disney World while sick with COVID. He was coughing up blood (!) while on a business trip to Orlando and still neglected to visit a doctor until the day after he returned home.

There are still plenty of people that will feel crummy and go. Obviously the most severe cases will need hospitalization, but some that don't will still feel up for going about their day. I know for a fact that others I've spoken with have had fevers with sinus infections, etc. that still went to visit the parks.

 

[skyp4WDW]

Iger suggesting possible temperature checks.

I figured they probably will

Edit:
@AMW86 posted before me. Please delete my post.
https://www.barrons.com/articles/bob-iger-on-disney-after-coronoavirus-51586252700

My first thought when I read that was.....If people can be infected and CONTAGIOUS for 2 WEEKS before they have any symptoms; what good is it to do temperature checks at the gates...Seems as though they are looking for a way to give the Public a (false) sense of security about returning to the Parks "safely"!

 

[Aurora0427]

I agree with the rest of your post, except for this part. There's literally another thread on this same board about a guy who potentially visited Disney World while sick with COVID. He was coughing up blood (!) while on a business trip to Orlando and still neglected to visit a doctor until the day after he returned home.

There are still plenty of people that will feel crummy and go. Obviously the most severe cases will need hospitalization, but some that don't will still feel up for going about their day. I know for a fact that others I've spoken with have had fevers with sinus infections, etc. that still went to visit the parks.

Well that’s true. There’s always going to be some jerk going out sick. You are right about that!

 

[lovethesun12]

I disagree. The kind of people who would be that nervous, that temperature check theater would reassure them, would likely not venture to Disney World while all of this is going on, anyway. As well they shouldn't. And other guests would be anxious about false positives due to heat from spending all day in the summer sun, women's hormone fluctuations, faulty equipment, etc. I recently had a forehead temperature check done by a nurse, and one side of my forehead registered one degree hotter than the other. And every park, hotel, & Disney Springs location at WDW is not going to be manned by nurses, either.

I can also only imagine the scenes and hold-ups caused by people being turned away at the gates due to their overheated 5 year-olds not passing the checks.

DH currently has to do them daily at work. Completely pointless.

 

[lovethesun12]

You are quite correct to state that this will need to be a balancing act between the economy and public health. There was a study done by one of the universities here in the UK, that reckons the tipping point is a reduction of about 6.4% in the economy. If the economy is affected, then that has a long term effect on the health of a nation too. As a point of reference, the financial crash we had a decade ago was a bit more than 6.4%. So if the lockdowns continue for too long, they could actually be stocking up more problems than they solve.

So on that basis I was optimistic that the 1st June date was a realistic date to aim for - but I'm not so convinced now for Florida (although for many countries and states that is a very realistic date).

I'm not sure either - hoping all these factors are left to the hands of health professionals and I can keep living in my happy bubble until it's all over. I hope everyone can =)