The 5-year-old girl who fell off the Disney Dream cruise ship was sitting in an open porthole for a photo when she slipped and tumbled into the ocean, according to a newly released police report obtained by PEOPLE.
The incident happened on Sunday, June 29, during a four-night Disney Cruise returning to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Witnesses say the family was walking along the fourth deck when they stopped to take a picture. The mother pointed toward a porthole railing, and her daughter climbed up to sit on it. Moments later, she lost her balance and fell backward, dropping about 49 feet into the water below.
The girl’s father immediately jumped in after her. Within minutes, Disney’s rescue crew responded. According to the Broward County Sheriff’s Office report, rescue boats launched at 11:40 a.m. and reached both of them nine minutes later. By 11:59 a.m., they were back aboard the ship receiving medical attention, according to court documents viewed by the New York Post.
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The father was later transported to Broward Health Medical Center for injuries sustained during the fall. His daughter, miraculously, was unharmed.
Investigators said it was the family’s first cruise. The father told police he had been walking ahead of his wife and daughter when he suddenly heard his wife’s “desperate” scream. The mother showed investigators the photos she took before and during the fall. The images were “live pictures,” and when played in sequence, they formed a short video showing the little girl climbing onto the railing and falling backward into the ocean.
The mother told police that although her daughter had taken swim lessons before, she could not actually swim. She also expressed frustration with the ship’s design, saying she believed “there should be coverings on the windows” and blamed Disney for what happened.
A representative for Disney did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment. The company had previously confirmed the rescue and praised the crew for their “exceptional skills and prompt actions, which ensured the safe return of both guests to the ship within minutes.”
Detective Christopher Favitta of the Broward County Sheriff’s Office personally inspected the scene. He measured the railing at 47 inches high and confirmed that the window was “open to the air and did not have a covering.” Favitta then sent the case to the Broward County State Attorney’s Office for review.
In a September 16 email included in the report, Assistant State Attorney Melissa Kelly announced that prosecutors would not pursue charges. “While the defendant’s conduct is arguably negligent and irresponsible, it does not rise to the egregious level of conduct necessary to establish criminal culpable negligence,” Kelly wrote. “Therefore, in light of the facts of this case, along with the relevant case law, I am declining one count of child neglect without great bodily harm.”
The near-tragic moment has sparked conversations among cruise passengers and parents about safety precautions around open railings and windows on ships. For this family, a photo opportunity turned into a terrifying ordeal—but one that ended with relief and gratitude instead of heartbreak.