Multiple Walt Disney World Resort guests staying at Disney's Port Orleans Resort on May 16 say they witnessed what appeared to be a serious medical emergency or possible death. However, unlike similar incidents in the past, no police scanner activity was recorded that night, raising questions about whether emergency calls on Disney property are being kept off the public record.
What Guests Witnessed on May 16
The reports began surfacing on X (formerly known as Twitter) when a guest staying at Disney's Port Orleans Resort reached out to the police scanner monitoring account @WDWActiveCrime, asking whether any emergency response had been logged that evening. The Disney Park guest, posting under the handle @SHMILY_ohana, described what they saw firsthand:
Nothing for tonight at Port Orleans? We heard commotion out our door and see ems running throwing an unresponsive person on a stretcher with the Lucas device (they did NOT look alive) and take off. Then they roped off the area with crime scene tape.
Nothing for tonight at Port Orleans? We heard commotion out our door and see ems running throwing an unresponsive person on a stretcher with the Lucas device (they did NOT look alive) and take off. Then they roped off the area with crime scene tape.
— Marie (@SHMILY_ohana) May 17, 2026
A Lucas device is a mechanical tool used in cases of cardiac arrest. A second X user, @jessbullock89, replied to confirm they had witnessed the same scene:
Came here to ask the same thing…
Came here to ask the same thing…
— Jess B (@jessbullock89) May 17, 2026
Neither guest specified whether the incident took place at Disney's Port Orleans Resort – Riverside or Disney's Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter. Walt Disney World Resort did not issue a public statement about the incident.
No Scanner Activity — And a Theory as to Why
What makes this incident unusual is the absence of any public record to corroborate it. @WDWActiveCrime, which has been monitoring and publicizing emergency scanner activity near Walt Disney World Resort since July 2025, found no public records of an emergency response at Disney's Port Orleans Resort that night. The account offered a theory on X:
I'm starting to get the impression that they are limiting their public calls for Disney Property since I started. They haven't had a ‘Man Down' call for months. I'm sure Disney put pressure on them.
I’m starting to get the impression that they are limiting their public calls for Disney Property since I started. They haven’t had a “Man Down” call for months. I’m sure Disney put pressure on them.
— Walt Disney World: Active Calls (@WDWActiveCrime) May 17, 2026
The speculation around suppressed scanner activity stems directly from a period last fall when Walt Disney World Resort became the subject of international news coverage following a string of deaths on its property within a matter of weeks.
The first involved Summer Equitz, a 31-year-old self-described Disney superfan from Illinois who died after falling from an interior balcony at Disney's Contemporary Resort. She had been reported missing before her death, and the incident was later ruled a suicide.
On October 21, 2025, a guest in their 60s died following a medical episode at Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort. Days after that, 28-year-old Matthew Cohn died by suicide after falling from an exterior balcony at the Bay Lake Tower building at Disney's Contemporary Resort, having checked into a 12th-floor room the night before and paid in cash.
In early November, two more guests died of natural causes following medical incidents at Disney's Pop Century Resort and Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort.
None of the five incidents involved foul play. Most were initially surfaced through guest accounts and @WDWActiveCrime's scanner monitoring before being picked up by news outlets around the world.
Should Walt Disney World Resort have to disclose when a death occurs on its property? Share your thoughts with Disney Fanatic in the comments.
If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, please reach out for help. The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available 24 hours a day by calling or texting 988.
