With Hurricane Ian moving ever-closer to Central Florida, Disney Cruise Line has sent out a statement to Disney-affiliated travel agents that the September 30 sailing of the Disney Wish from Port Canaveral has been cancelled.

The full statement reads as follows:

“We have been closely monitoring Hurricane Ian with the safety and well-being of our Guests and Crew Members always top of mind. Due to the weather conditions most recently forecasted for Port Canaveral and Central Florida and the impact that it might have on port operations, the September 30, 2022, sailing of the Disney Wish has been cancelled.”

No details were given as to refunds or compensation, but Disney Cruise Line will likely reach out to guests in the coming days.

Operations at nearby Walt Disney World have already been severely affected, with new check-ins prohibited for a 48 hour period and the four theme parks closing for two days as a result of Hurricane Ian.

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According to the Orlando Sentinel, Universal Orlando Resort has settled a lawsuit with two families alleging that a Team Member dressed as Gru from “Despicable Me” used a hate symbol hand gesture in families taken with Black and Latino children.

Tiffiney and Richard Zinger, along with Geisy Moreno and Joel Rodriguez, said their children separately faced racial discrimination from Team Members acting as Gru at Universal Orlando Resort theme parks and hotels. In two separate photos with their respective children, the Team Member playing Gru can be seen making the “OK” hand gesture, which has been appropriated as a symbol for white supremacy in some circles.

The families sued Universal in Orange County last June for more than $100,000 in total damages, later moving the lawsuit to U.S. District Court and increasing their claims to over $75,000 for each plaintiff. Both families are claiming emotional distress damages, and that the performer touched their children without consent.

Per the norm in such cases, terms of the settlement were not disclosed. A spokesman for Universal Orlando told USA Today in 2019 that the Team Member in the Zingers’ photo had been fired from the resort, and they are “taking steps to ensure this does not happen again”

The incident with the Zingers occurred around a week after a racially motivated massacre in New Zealand during which the perpetrator flashed the OK hand symbol to cameras. The Anti-Defamation League claims it first appeared on forums like 4chan in 2017 as a symbol of white supremacy.

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It’s no secret that everyone loves the Orange Bird, and through all the lovely Orange Bird merch we’ve seen in the Vault Collection, we’ve definitely been missing out on some Crocs. That is until today, when we spotted a pair at Island Mercantile in Disney’s Animal Kingdom!

Orange Bird Vault Collection Crocs – $59.99

The Crocs are orange on the sole with white wrapping around the top.

The pattern features Orange Bird among orange blossoms and halved oranges. Both shoes feature a rubber Orange Bird pinned into one of the holes.

The straps have an extra rubber addition that says “Florida” in green and orange letters.

We found these at Island Mercantile in Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and we expected to see them across the resort in no time. Will you be adding these to your shoe stocks? Let us know in the comments below!

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Earlier this year, Walt Disney World started removing the archaic turnstiles from ride entrances around the park. Attractions like Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress have seen their entrance spaces opened up thanks to this change, and now the Country Bear Jamboree is wide open too!

Walking into the opening day attraction in Frontierland, we see now a clear entrance with none of the former turnstiles or the bars with surrounded them remaining.

The flooring has been replaced and remains slightly raised over the rest of the lobby, but now the entrance to Country Bear Jamboree is open and clear, a victory for making the show even more accessible to the handicapped.

Turnstiles of this nature were common in the earlier days of Walt Disney World, used to count the number of guests entering an attraction and collect ride tickets.

How do you feel about this change? Let us know in the comments below!

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