Reported by Mark Jenkins
LAKE BUENA VISTA -- A power outage on the Walt Disney World monorail left guests trapped on board for nearly three hours.
Emergency workers said the express and resort lines from the Magic Kingdom lost power just after 1:10 a.m. Sunday, leaving everyone aboard without any lights or air conditioning for hours.
PHOTOS OF THE RESCUE
News 13 viewer Mercedes Bonilla said she was on the train during the outage, and shared photos of the rescue with us! Click on our exclusive slideshow on the right to see them!
A Disney representative told News 13 seven trains were in operation, when a failed computer hard drive caused the power outage.
One of the trains was empty, and three had passengers who were able to get off on the train’s own power. The remaining three trains in operation needed help.
Disney said they tried normal procedures to restore the power, but when that didn’t work, they called in the Reedy Creek Fire Department.
Fire officials said workers brought out a special tow train to bring each monorail back to the Transportation and Ticket Center.
It took until 3:50 a.m. to get everyone safely off the trains.
Disney said the computer failure has since been repaired. A representative told News 13 the monorail system was back up and running shortly before 7:45 a.m. Sunday.
The theme parks are running ferries and buses to transport guests between the Magic Kingdom, the Transportation and Ticket Center and area resorts.
Disney’s Official Statement
“Our commitment to safety guides all that we do, and this is the type of situation we train for with Reedy Creek. We extend our apologies to guests who were affected and are working directly with them.”
Disney said they had two medical issues with guests, but officials said those guests had pre-existing problems that were not connected to the outage.
The Walt Disney World Monorail System has been under intense scrutiny since a deadly crash in July that killed 21-year-old pilot Austin Wuennenberg.
The monorail also had a previous power problem in October, when a circuit breaker shorted out at the Magic Kingdom station.
Were You There?
Two women and five children from Brevard County were among those trapped on the monorail early Sunday morning.
They say the experience was terrifying. They say others were trying to break the windows to get out. Both victims say it was hot and very frustrating.
"The guys that were in there with us, they were just freaking out, they were trying to pull doors open, banging on the windows, our kids were crying and crying and screaming, they wanted to get out, they didn't know what was going on, it was very scary, it was traumatic, especially for the kids. And we were trying to be calm for the kids," said Danielle MacNeil.
Were you at Walt Disney World Sunday morning when the power went out on the monorails? We want to hear your side of the story!
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David B. writes:
“I was going to the Transportation and Ticket Center, when the train jerked really hard. I thought it was just for traffic clearance, but then realized that nothing was on. My family and I were stuck there from 1 a.m. to 4 a.m. It was a crazy night that I will never forget. When the firemen came to my cabin, I was ready, but not ready to leave [my] family behind. I ended up singing my way down the Reedy Creek cherry picker truck, and later united with the rest of my family.”
Deb, from St. Cloud, writes:
“The Monorail issues at Disney yesterday started well before the wee hours. I was stuck on it from 5:05 p.m. until 5:50 p.m. We were suspended up in the air and the system had three bells that chimed to advise there were traffic issues ahead. Then the monorail pilot would come on to advise the Monorails were having technical difficulties and we would be on our way shortly. The guests were getting very antsy. Especially being up in the air, in a small space for such a long time.”
Some tourists told News 13 they were getting skeptical of their safety.
For one visitor, it was the culmination of a difficult day at the park.
“It was kind of a disaster, in my opinion, at the Magic Kingdom,” Eric Gieszl, a guest at the resort, told News 13. “I experienced downtime on Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain and lots of attractions.”
Gieszl said it went from bad to worse at the end of the night, when he heard the monorail was shut down.
“Had I been on that monorail, I would’ve been quite upset and tempted to jump off,” he said.
Fortunately, it did not get to that point for those trapped on board.
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