We can’t believe this needed to be said, but apparently it does: Do not drink the water from theme-park rides. At best, it’s dirty (no thanks to people who keep scattering their loved one’s ashes around the park), and at worst, you could expose yourself to brain-eating amoebas.


Advertisement


While this has never been a good idea, there’s recently been an increase in the number of videos of people drinking from the water on rides at Walt Disney World like Splash Mountain and It’s A Small World.


This is particularly concerning for visitors to the Orlando resort considering the presence of brain-eating amoebas in the waters in and around Orlando. In 1980, a young boy contracted a disease that proved lethal after visiting Disney’s now-shuttered River Country water park, and nine years ago, another 11-year-old boy from Florida passed away after coming into contact with a brain-eating amoeba while on vacation in Costa Rica. Earlier this year, health officials issued a statement about the amoeba and its presence in Central Florida waterways, warning locals and visitors to the area to be careful.



Despite all of this, some people love to live on the edge, particularly the guy who dunked a water bottle into the water on Splash Mountain and took a huge drink. Commenters were horrified, with one person writing, “I believe this is how ‘The Last of Us’ started.” Others concluded that the guy was most definitely dead by now, although the OP commented the next day and confirmed the man was still alive, so let’s call it a near miss.




If brain-eating amoebas aren’t enough to deter you, another commenter pointed out that cast members who have to enter the water on Disney rides for evacuations and accidentally ingest any of the water or have open wounds are required to get tetanus shots due to the metal water pumps and ride mechanics increasing the risk of tetanus.


So if you do dare to take a dip in these waters, be ready to chase it with a nice vaccination shot.