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Alligator attack at Disney World: Chilling new details emerge

A new report by Florida wildlife officials includes witness accounts of the deadly alligator attack on 2-year-old Lane Graves.
/ Source: TODAY

Two-year-old Lane Graves had bent to scoop up some wet sand for the castle he was building on the beach of a Disney World resort when an alligator suddenly snatched the boy by his head, according to the final report by Florida authorities on the June attack.

The report recounts the desperate attempt by the boy's father, Matt Graves, to save his son and includes witness accounts of the horrific scene.

"I saw the father jump in after the gator and he rolled around in the water,” 16-year-old Peter Courakos told NBC News.

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Another bystander described Graves running out of the water “with blood all over the right side of his face and right hand. According to the report, the father was unable to free his child and began yelling, “Please come help my son a gator got him.”

Lane's body was found following a 16-hour search. Florida wildlife officials caught and killed six alligators following the attack and say that while “it is very likely” they got the one that killed Lane, they can't be certain.

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Disney has since built a stone wall around the lagoon where the attack occurred and added warning signs to the area. But the new report by the Wildlife Conservation Commission raises questions about whether previous warnings were ignored. The report cites two people who reported alligator sightings to Disney employees, but it is unclear what actions, if any, the employees took.

Lane Graves would have celebrated his third birthday on September 3.