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Credit: AK on UnsplashA new development has surfaced in the case of a woman who died following an allergic reaction at the Walt Disney World Resort.
In October 2023, Kanokporn Tangsuan, a 42-year-old medical doctor from NYU Langone in New York City, was visiting Walt Disney World Resort for a conference. She explored the parks and Disney Springs with her husband, Jeffrey Piccolo, and his mother, Jackie Piccolo, before tragedy struck.
According to a lawsuit filed by Mr. Piccolo, Tangsuan suffered acute anaphylactic shock shortly after consuming a meal at Raglan Road Irish Pub in Disney Springs. She had a severe allergy to dairy and nuts and reportedly took multiple precautions when ordering her food.
Court documents state that she asked a restaurant server what dishes were safe for her to eat, receiving multiple confirmations before being served. Some of the dishes arrived with allergy flags, while others did not. Her meal reportedly included vegan shepherd’s pie and corn fritters.
Shortly after dining, Tangsuan went shopping separately from her family. When she could not be reached by phone, concern quickly grew. It was later discovered that she had gone into anaphylactic shock near Planet Hollywood and self-administered an epinephrine pen.
She was rushed to the hospital, but by the time her husband and mother-in-law arrived, they were informed that she had passed away. An autopsy confirmed the presence of elevated levels of nuts and dairy in her system, and her death was ruled an accident.
Mr. Piccolo is now suing multiple entities, including Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Disney Springs, and Great Irish Pubs Florida Inc. (which operates Raglan Road), seeking damages exceeding $50,000 and demanding a jury trial.
Initially, The Walt Disney Company aimed to seek arbitration instead of a trial for the case by referencing the fine print and user agreement Mr. Piccolo okayed when he subscribed to the Disney+ streaming service, and later when he purchased the Walt Disney World Resort EPCOT tickets.
“We are deeply saddened by the family’s loss and understand their grief,” a Disney spokesperson said (via CBS News). “Given that this restaurant is neither owned nor operated by Disney, we are merely defending ourselves against the plaintiff’s attorney’s attempt to include us in their lawsuit against the restaurant.”
Following Disney’s response, attorney Peter Giattino–who is Tangsuan’s cousin–fired back, calling Disney “shocking and absurd” (per CBS). This led to new comments from Josh D’Amaro.
“At Disney, we strive to put humanity above all other considerations,” Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro said at the time (via a separate CBS News report). “With such unique circumstances as the ones in this case, we believe this situation warrants a sensitive approach to expedite a resolution for the family who have experienced such a painful loss. As such, we’ve decided to waive our right to arbitration and have the matter proceed in court.”
Now, new information has come to light in the tragic case of Dr. Kanokporn Tangsuan. Mr. Piccolo is now asking the Raglan Road restaurant to provide all recipes and ingredients for the meals his late wife consumed while at the location. According to CBS, he filed this motion earlier in the week as part of this highly-publicized wrongful death lawsuit.
Prior to Disney’s response on the matter, Raglan Road updated their allergen notice on the official restaurant website. “Kindly note that we are NOT a Gluten/Allergen free restaurant,” the disclaimer read. “We CANNOT guarantee that any dish we prepare is free from Gluten/Allergen or free from cross contact. Guests must notify their server of any allergy-friendly requests.”
The notice also emphasizes that a manager will discuss the allergy menu with guests, but individuals must ultimately make their own informed choices based on their dietary needs.
The lawsuit is ongoing. Inside the Magic will continue to update this developing story.