Even though Walt Disney World Resort is a magical place, sometimes things can go wrong. There’s the “Disney rash” that’s become common among guests, which is damage to blood vessels typically caused by exercising in the heat. Then there are injuries like twisted ankles, bruises from bumping into things, and small issues that don’t typically amount to much.
But one guest is claiming their trip was ruined by a wedgie. Yes, a wedgie.
A woman and her husband are suing Disney, claiming that the woman was injured when she went down a waterslide. This allegedly happened during a 2019 visit to Typhoon Lagoon water park at Walt Disney World. And they want more than $50,000 in damages.
Related: Guests Invited to “Showering With DeSantis” Event at Typhoon Lagoon
According to the woman — identified as Emma McGuinness — she, her daughter, and her mother decided to ride Humunga Kowabunga. Humunga Kowabunga is a 214-foot drop waterslide, where guests plummet five stories at speeds of up to 40 miles per hour. The Walt Disney World Resort website says that guests will speed down the waterslide at a 60-degree angle.
The lawsuit states that cast members tell guests at the top of the slide to cross their ankles before going down. But they do not say why it is important. The suit also states that Disney does not inform guests of the dangers of uncrossing your ankles while going down the slide. Guests are also not told that the force of the water could “push loose garments into a person’s anatomy—an event known as a ‘wedgie,’”.
Related: Could Typhoon Lagoon Get More Disney Characters?
In addition to that, the lawsuit criticized Disney for not informing theme park guests that the dangers of a serious wedgie are more likely to happen to someone with female anatomy. It is also more dangerous for a woman than it is for a man.
Ms. McGuinness claims that when she went down the slide, she suffered from a “painful wedgie,” but that’s not all. She also alleges that, as she approached the bottom of the slide, she briefly went airborne. That caused her to suffer from a hard landing in the pool at the end of the slide.
McGuinness and her husband Edward want Disney to pay more than $50,000 in damages. Her lawyer claims that his client has suffered a number of physical and mental damages.
She has been left with permanent injuries, the suit says, including damage to her internal organs, and has suffered “scarring, mental anguish, loss of the capacity of enjoyment of life, expensive hospitalization and medical care, and loss of earnings, all of which injuries are either permanent or continuing in nature.”
The couple believes that Disney was negligent because it did not warn riders of the potential dangers of going down Humunga Cowabunga. They also state that Disney does not tell guests that they should wear garments to help prevent wedgies.
Not the First Swimming Pool Lawsuit
This is not the first time that a guest has sued Disney for injuries they claim they sustained while enjoying Disney’s water features.
A woman — identified as Mrs. Klinger — claimed that she was injured in 2019 while swimming at Disney’s Old Key West Resort. The lawsuit — which was not filed until 2022 — says that she was injured while using the Sand Castle water slide.
Mrs. Klinger claimed that she hit the bottom of the swimming pool at the end of the slide. She says that she was injured so badly that she ended up needing surgery to repair her ankle. She also alleges that, because of the injury, she now has Complex Regional Pain Syndrome.
Mrs. Klinger is suing Disney for $100,000 in damages.
