I am shocked keep a good eye on your child

[jimsgal05]

I just got off the phone with a friend who is there right now, her son has Autism and she is a caregiver of another child a little girl who is non verble with autism. Well the little girl took off they were at allstar sports getting some snacks. just 10 seconds BAMM!! couldn't find her told the CM at resort said she took off and call the security. Well long story short,she boarded a bus to DHS and got off managed to go through security and into the park SHE HAD NO TICKET OR ADULT WITH HER!!! How does this happen I get the getting on the Bus and going trough sec. but into the park OMG meanwhile the police were called and a nice lady who got off the BUS at Allstar sports said she she saw her board the bus...this was 20 mins or so..my friend was causing a MAJOR sceene because she basicly was told find her yourself she must be around here somewhere. Finally they(cm) called DHS and another CM found her trying to get inline for a ride...SHE IS LESS THAN 6 yrs old...and this was 1 hr after she left the cargiver

WARNING parents if you have a child that bolts from you please becareful... because they can get pretty far from you.

Child is okay and the mother and caregiver are still a wreck...the mom was not there she was still in the dinning area with the caregivers son and husband when this all happened.

I am still in hock that she was allowed in the park...

[faline]

It's very scary when you can't find a child. Having made it to Disney Studios, it doesn't surprise me that she might have made it into the park particularly if cast members thought she was with a group she was near. I would imagine it could be easy to lose track of the number of passes that are coming through the turnstyle and it might have even been through a turnstyle that was unmanned at the time.

I'm so glad this story has a happy ending!

[Aurora]

What a fright for your friend! Glad she was found and everything worked out in the end.

Just my opinion but if she was able to bolt from your friend's group, get on a bus, go with the flow of people and get in line for an attraction without being with an adult, I can see how she might be able to manage slipping into the park some way or other. She sounds like a very smart and determined little girl. If she was right behind a mom with a stroller and things were busy, I can see her getting in easily.

Years ago I lost my then-3-year-old son at the Boardwalk (long story, I posted it then on Intercot). There are so many ways that kids can get lost and not cause a commotion and adults might not even realize there is a problem. In my case, there WAS a very astute CM nearby who noticed he looked confused and took care of my son until we could get to him. I will always be grateful.

[Aurora]

It's very scary when you can't find a child. Having made it to Disney Studios, it doesn't surprise me that she might have made it into the park particularly if cast members thought she was with a group she was near. I would imagine it could be easy to lose track of the number of passes that are coming through the turnstyle and it might have even been through a turnstyle that was unmanned at the time.

I'm so glad this story has a happy ending!

Linda, I was writing while you posted but we were of very like minds!

[BrerGnat]

Wow, scary story, although I can't say I'm surprised. Kids with Autism sometimes are VERY good at doing things we assume they might not be able to.

With that said, some kids with Autism have a tendency to Elope (i.e. bolt). It's not something that just happens from time to time; rather it's a tendency a child either has or doesn't have. By 6, it is usually pretty well known if the child is an Eloper. I would think that the parents would have a plan in place to prevent this from happening at a place like WDW, as Eloping can be a VERY dangerous behavior. These kids often have no awareness of their surroundings when they are in this mode...they have a destination and they get tunnel vision.

Sounds like this family needs to put a better plan in place and FAST to prevent this child from doing this again, such as a stroller or harness of some sort, for the rest of this trip. This is one of the many things that an Autism service dog can help with, so perhaps this family should look into this when they are back home.

So glad this ended up okay.

[ANG]

I, too, and glad this story has a happy ending.

DS1 is ASD and I keep an extremely tight watch on him in any public area. Even more so at Disney.

I remember our last trip, I was in the baby center at AK letting DS stretch his legs some on a hot day. A CM brought in a small boy (maybe 3-4?) and he was lost from his family. I felt horrible for that family but was super impressed by the way the CMs acted. One was one her phone talking to others to find the mom and the other was trying to get him to calm down and get his name. His mom walked in about 10 minutes later.

[zhemi]

Just a tip that has been useful to my family in the past:

Take a SHARPIE marker and on the child's upper arm write the PARENT'S cell phone number along with the words 'Am I lost? Please call my mom/dad.'
Be sure to apply this AFTER sun block has dried or it will wipe off.

We found Lost Kid Tags rip and fall off too easily, but this will stay on the skin until you take it off (again, sunblock will remove it).
My son walked away from our group at Niagara Falls once when he was 4. Thank goodness we had done this because a nice lady found him and called the number on his arm.

Glad your story had a happy ending!

[darthmacho]

My daughter got separated from us in an arcade for all of 30 seconds when she was about 3, and I still feel it was the longest, most frightening half-minute of my life, so I can only imagine what that poor woman went through. Sadly, I imagine WDW has forever lost some magic for her.

[Mousemates]

glad things worked out in the end....and I would be willing to bet that when the girl got back a better plan for "eloping" was already in the works by some frantic caregivers.

[ransam]

One thing we have done is to tell everyone in our group, including kids of all ages from 7 to 49, is if seperated to meet at a specific place. when i say specific, i mean specific. Not "in front of the castle"... that's too big of an area. but to pick out a bench and say we all meet there.

It is scarey. We went a few years ago w/ a child we babysat who had become part of our family and he got lost and you should have seen me running back the trail i had gone until i found him.....

[minnie04]

WOW!! What a scary thought that this could and did happen. I’m so glad it had a happy ending. I thought I lost my DS once in a store in DTD, he was an infant at the time. I didn’t see him in the stroller and when I looked at everyone in the group. No one had him. I will never forget the feeling that came over me. Thank god my nephew (who I forgot was with us in the store) walked up with him... I was never so scared in my whole life.

They do have tracking devises to track children like bracelets or maybe something that can clip on their clothes for the day. I would defiantly look into something like that. Especially if you know the child has the tendency to run off. I would look into it for any child for that matter….

[debbymc4]

Similar to the Sharpie idea, I made a tag for my son at one of those kiosks where you can make name tags for your pets. It just clips right on to his belt loops and has our phone numbers.

[figgie]

No worse feeling in the world than to loose sight of a child, no matter what the length of time. Lost our son for a few minutes at DTD when he was small. I will never forget that feeling! Total Panic! Turns our he was just hiding as a game and was watching me the whole time. We had a long talk after that incident but kids will be kids and it happens.

Love the idea of writing on the arm!

[ANG]

We had mini luggage tags embroidered for us (knotted to his belt loop) that not only have our cell number but that he is ASD. So if a CM finds him, they know he won't respond to their questions or actions like most other kids will. Since he looks "typical."

[GAN]

No offense to the OP, but there definitely seems to be something wrong here. It's pretty well known that Disney has a substantial lost child protocol -telling the family to look for the child themselves is probably no part of that procedure. The fact that a child with Autism gets on a bus without anyone noticing(or being concerned enough) would be beyond shocking. Sure, any child could blend in, but if I even if I had a slight doubt I would ask a question of the child or the very least of the other adults around me. I'm not buying it.

[Quadstriker]

No offense to the OP, but there definitely seems to be something wrong here. It's pretty well known that Disney has a substantial lost child protocol -telling the family to look for the child themselves is probably no part of that procedure.

What was actually said: "Alright ma'am I've contacted the head of our lost children department and he's sent out a code turquoise alert which initiates our 382 step procedure so that we can find your child and reunite you safely. But in no way should you feel that you can't look for your child yourself if you have an idea of where they might have gone."

What hysterical woman heard: "Look for your child yourself."

[BrerGnat]

No offense to the OP, but there definitely seems to be something wrong here. It's pretty well known that Disney has a substantial lost child protocol -telling the family to look for the child themselves is probably no part of that procedure. The fact that a child with Autism gets on a bus without anyone noticing(or being concerned enough) would be beyond shocking. Sure, any child could blend in, but if I even if I had a slight doubt I would ask a question of the child or the very least of the other adults around me. I'm not buying it.

Eh...it's always possible that this didn't happen QUITE as relayed here. We all know how stories can be quite exaggerated when being retold.

However, I am inclined to believe the majority of this story.

I have read more than a few stories of things Autistic kids have been able to pull off that sound, on the surface, to be absolutely unbelievable. The one that sticks out in my mind involved a 10 year old boy with Autism who got online, purchased an airline ticket, took his father's car keys, got in the car, drove to the AIRPORT, parked the car, and was able to board a cross country flight BY HIMSELF to go visit his mother after he was told he could not do so. So, yeah. If a kid can get away with that kind of stunt, I have NO problem believing this story.

Now, I can say that my OWN son was able to walk through the turnstiles at Disneyland once ahead of me and without a ticket. He simply walked in the stroller gate when another mother and her child went though it. He wasn't paying attention and he thought it was me. I had to call him back and tell the CM he was with ME, not the lady in front of me. So, I can see a child being able to slip into the park without a ticket fairly easily. All she would have had to do is walk in the stroller gate. It takes just one CM who is really not paying attention as carefully as he/she should. It happened to us, after all.

So, to be fair, maybe this story is made up. But, it could just as easily be true, and it does bear reminding parents (especially of special needs kids) that you really, REALLY have to be on your toes with watching them.

[Aurora]

If she was right behind a mom with a stroller and things were busy, I can see her getting in easily.

Now, I can say that my OWN son was able to walk through the turnstiles at Disneyland once ahead of me and without a ticket. He simply walked in the stroller gate when another mother and her child went though it. He wasn't paying attention and he thought it was me. I had to call him back and tell the CM he was with ME, not the lady in front of me. So, I can see a child being able to slip into the park without a ticket fairly easily. All she would have had to do is walk in the stroller gate. It takes just one CM who is really not paying attention as carefully as he/she should. It happened to us, after all.

When I had the same thought above, I was pretty sure it had probably happened to someone along the line. And it was you! Great story and example of how things can happen that you don't expect.

Having had to deal with all three kids being lost at some time or other and managing a sister with developmental needs at the parks, I have no problem believing the OP's story.

[GAN]

I have read more than a few stories of things Autistic kids have been able to pull off that sound, on the surface, to be absolutely unbelievable. The one that sticks out in my mind involved a 10 year old boy with Autism who got online, purchased an airline ticket, took his father's car keys, got in the car, drove to the AIRPORT, parked the car, and was able to board a cross country flight BY HIMSELF to go visit his mother after he was told he could not do so. So, yeah. If a kid can get away with that kind of stunt, I have NO problem believing this story.

Not to change the topic, but could a child actually get a boarding pass(without ID), get through security(without an adult or ID), and get on a plane without an Airline "escort"? My guess is that this particular story is an Urban Myth. Of course, anything is possible.

[jimsgal05]

the little girl had a tag with her name and her condition. I forgot to say that she wears it even to the food store. while the caregiver was looking for her in the store the child was long gone on the bus. what upset my friend was the CM's were not in a hurry to do anything the whole family was looking for her... well just wanted to "put in out there" great suggestions about the sharpie and tags...