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Major storms and flooding force Guests to evacuate indoor attractions at Disney World

living with the land flooded leaks rainstorm
Credit: Twitter/Canva Creation

While several states in the country have been dealing with drought and near-drought conditions, Florida has had to grapple with severe thunderstorms producing heavy, sometimes flooding rains and massive lightning strikes. And Disney World has been hit hard by some of the summer storms.

storm clouds cinderella castle disney world

Credit: Becky Burkett/DisneyDining

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On Tuesday, severe thunderstorms made their way across Central Florida, and the Disney World Resort was right in the path of some of those storms. As a result, Guests were forced to evacuate popular attractions, namely at EPCOT, and this time, the attractions were indoor experiences.

At EPCOT’s The Land pavilion, Guests can enjoy quick-service dining options at the Sunshine Seasons food court. They can also experience Living with the Land, a slowly-moving boat ride that introduces Guests to environmentally-friendly techniques for growing food. The attraction also focuses on other methods of sustainability.

Guests can also experience the thrilling Soarin’ Around the World attraction, the pre-show for which is narrated by Patrick Warburton. Soarin’ lifts rows of Guests into the air in front of a massive 80-foot dome screen so that they feel as though they are actually soaring over the earth below them.

Soarin' over the Great Wall of China

Credit: Disney Parks

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At The Land pavilion at EPCOT, flooding from outside led to water seeping inside, where Guests gather to enjoy Soarin’ Around the World and Living with the Land.

Because of the flooding, Guests had to evacuate the area inside The Land pavilion. Water began to leak from the ceiling, causing damage to the area, as seen in this tweet from user DiscMan2000.

“Looks like some serious water damage at The Land pavilion,” DiscMan2000 tweeted. “Water still dripping from the ceiling.”

DiscMan2000 then replied to his own tweet with another tweet that read, “I mean it was raining outside… but should it be raining ~inside~?”

Another user, TheTonyMan69, responded to DiscMan2000’s tweet, saying, “Saw this a few weeks ago. Water ended up somehow breaking the right-hand automatic door,” referring to the entrance and exit doors at The Land pavilion.

The severe thunderstorms endured by Guests at the Walt Disney World Resort lately have delivered a mixed bag of elements. One Guest even caught this magnificent “spider lightning” over the Haunted Mansion at Liberty Square.

Haunted Mansion lightning strike

Credit: Twitter/Disney Clips Guy

At the front of the Guest area at EPCOT on Tuesday evening, the lightning was indeed something at which to marvel, as captured in this video:

@roadwarriors4life The storms rolled in tonight. #disneyworld #severestorms ♬ A Storm Is Coming – Tommee Profitt & Liv Ash

Several months ago, rainstorms caused Cinderella Castle to all but vanish from view for Guests aboard the PeopleMover, as seen in this photo.

cinderella castle in the rain

Credit: TikTok/DisneyParksDIY

Is there a problem with Disney World’s drainage systems throughout the parks? Or is there just so much rain falling at one time that the systems are overwhelmed?

After all, it’s one thing to enjoy the parks at Disney World when it’s raining, as it’s usually a viable option to retreat inside a building at the parks. But what are Guests to do when the building structures themselves begin to leak and flood?

About Becky Burkett

Becky's from the Lone Star State and has been writing since she was 10 and encountered her first Disney Park when she was 11. It was love at first Main Street Electrical Parade. Joy is blank lined journals, 0.7 mm pens, and all things Walt, Woody and Buzz, PIXAR, Imagineering, Sleeping Beauty (make it blue!), Disney Parks history and EPCOT. At Disney World, you'll find her croonin' with the birdies at the Enchanted Tiki Room or hangin' with Woody and the gang at Toy Story Land. If you can dream, you really can do it!