Firefighters were feeding gators near Disney months before child killed

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Firefighters at Walt Disney World were warned to stop feeding alligators at one of the resort's fire stations two months before an alligator killed a toddler.

According to emails obtained by the Orlando Sentinel , Reedy Creek Emergency Services admonished firefighters for feeding at least one of two alligators at a station less than a half-mile from Seven Seas Lagoon where 2-year-old Lane Graves of Omaha, Nebraska, was killed after being pulled into the water by a gator.

Feeding alligators is illegal.

The email said employees were afraid after one gator was spotted near the parking lot and asked officials to remove it.

Reedy Creek District Administrator John Classe said Disney's animal-control department was contacted but he did not know whether either alligator was ever removed.

A Disney spokeswoman said Wednesday it was unclear whether the gator had been removed.

Disney is the parent company of ABC7.