Revealed: Mother of Disney child who fell off cruise ship put her on railing to take photos

• A police report obtained by The Daily Mail has revealed the dramatic details of what really happened when a five-year-old fell off Disney Dream earlier this year.
• The report revealed that the daughter’s mother placed her on the railing of the porthole to take photos.
• The daughter lost her balance and fell, which is when the father sprang into action and jumped in the ocean and saved her.

Earlier this year, when a man’s five-year-old daughter fell off a Disney cruise ship, her dad made international headlines by heroically diving in after her. Both were rescued by Disney Dream’s emergency crew in one of the most amazing sea rescues of recent times.

Now, more details have emerged on the events that led up to the dramatic fall, dive and rescue. The Daily Mail has reported that the child’s mother encouraged the daughter to climb in the porthole, the one she would soon fall out of.

This was outlined in a police report that revealed that the mother told the girl to pose for a photo in front of the porthole. It was after this that the five-year-old lost her balance and fell into the ocean below.

It has also emerged that police wanted to charge the mother, but the Attorney General disagreed.

According to the report, the mother had assumed the porthole had either a window or perspex, not realising that her daughter could fall through. 

She quickly shouted to her husband, who, after about 45 seconds of seeking help, took the leap and hurled himself into the water. 

The report also revealed more of the drama that unfolded once the father entered the water. He tried to swim over to his daughter, but was unable to see her. He managed to follow the sound of her yelling and was able to reach her, holding her above the water as she couldn’t swim herself. 

Flotation devices were thrown, but they were too far away from them for the father to risk leaving his daughter. 

The young child was so small that she didn’t trigger the ship’s automatic overboard alarm, and it was only triggered when the father dived in after that. The father managed to tread water and keep the daughter afloat for more than 10 minutes until the rescue team arrived. The child miraculously escaped without even an injury. 

The mother commented that “she felt like there should be coverings on the window” and that “Disney is responsible for what occurred”. 

The detective who wrote the police report recommended that the mother be charged with child neglect, noting that “Upon looking at the window myself, as a prudent person, I immediately saw that the window was open to the air, and did not have a covering.

“This act, facilitated by [the mother] placed the child in a life-threatening situation. As a result, the child fell from the ship and into the water, in an avoidable accident.”

However, the local state attorney’s office disagreed and chose not to charge the mother, rather closing the case.

These details finally bring some clarity to a situation that had not only the cruise community, but people all over the world shocked to the core and had internet rumours swirling.

At one point the father was being vilified after online actors claimed that he had placed the child on the railing. Until now, details on the reality of what happened have been thin on the ground.

With the information we have now, speculation may be over, but debate is likely just beginning. 

While the detective of the case viewed the mother’s behaviour as negligent, she took a different view, blaming Disney for the incident. 

Some may feel a responsible parent should surely check if a railing has protective plexiglass or not, it is also reasonable to raise questions on why a child could fall so easily off a cruise ship designed for children.

What do you think?