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Credit: Edited by Inside the MagicThis has been the deadliest two weeks in the history of the Walt Disney World Resort. Earlier this month, a 31-year-old woman committed suicide at the Contemporary Resort, a man in his 60s died at Fort Wilderness, and a man in his 60s died at the Contemporary on Thursday.
With millions of guests coming to Disney World every year, it is somewhat surprising that more people have not died at Disney World. There have only been 68 deaths at Disney World since the park opened in 1971. The majority of those deaths have been from natural causes, but some have been truly shocking.
The first death at Disney World took place in 1974 when a light bulb filament ignited glue fumes, killing a 49-year-old carpenter who was repairing a boat. Disney World’s closed water park, River Country, has claimed three lives, including two drownings and an 11-year-old who contracted a brain-eating amoebic infection. River Country closed in 2001.
Before 2025, the deadliest year in the park’s history was 1982, which also saw three deaths. In that year, a 36-year-old died of natural causes at the Polynesian, a one-year-old died when she fell from a moving tram, and a two-year-old died when a hanging menu fell on her.
The only other year in Disney World’s history that saw three deaths was 1984, but while those deaths happened on Disney property, they technically weren’t Disney World guests. A South Carolina couple and their daughter died when their single-engine plane crashed landed in EPCOT’s parking lot that year, killing all three on board.
The New York Post reports that Disney World has paid out $27 million since 1977 in wrongful death claims. However, many of the guests settled their lawsuits with Disney, and those settlements are not public record.
While Disney World has had 68 deaths, its sister park, Disneyland, in California, has only had 32 since opening in 1955. Given the size and scope of Disney World and the massive number of visitors, it makes sense that it would have more deaths on property than Disneyland. However, Disneyland has had only two homicides at the parks, with a 15-year-old being shot in the Disneyland parking lot and an 18-year-old being stabbed during a fight in the park in 1981.
With only two months left in 2025, this could end up being the deadliest year in Disney World’s history, but hopefully, there will be no more deaths in the “Most Magical Place on Earth.”