A fight and a bursting balloon triggered widespread panic and a "stampede" at Walt Disney World on Thursday night, as police responded to false reports of an active shooter at the Florida theme park.
The incident unfolded in Magic Kingdom around 10 p.m., just as the park was closing. Videos shared on social media showed a store inside the park strewn with fallen chairs and items from displays, illustrating the chaos as frightened guests scrambled for safety.
“Went to Magic Kingdom today and there was literally a stampede because of a suspected shooter I thought that was actually going to be my last day,” X user "anxrosa" shared with a video at 10:16 p.m.
“There was just a f–king stampede in Magic Kingdom. I think people thought there was a shooter that was the scariest thing I’ve ever been in in my entire life,” said another park visitor.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office quickly clarified that there was no active shooter, attributing the panic to a fight and a balloon popping at an inopportune moment.
“There is NO active shooter at WaltDisneyWorld’s Magic Kingdom. A fight occurred, and a “popping” sound was heard that we believe was a balloon,” the department stated on social media. “Guests began running and that’s how the active shooter rumor started. There is no active shooter.”
Those who took refuge in the stores were held there while police patrolled the area and investigated the situation.
Guests were finally allowed to leave after about 15 minutes and were evacuated via the “ferry boats”—one of the park’s water transportation services—since the monorails and buses were not in operation, according to anxrosa in a follow-up post.
“A lot of people are pretty shaken up but we haven’t been given an explanation,” the user added.
“We appreciate the immediate response of the Orange County Sheriff’s Office to quickly assess and clear the situation. Normal operations have resumed and the park is now closed for the evening,” a Walt Disney World Resorts spokesperson stated, according to WKMG.
