Disney World hit with another tragedy as man, 54, dies after riding It's a Small World

Disney has been hit with yet another tragedy as it was revealed this week that a man died after riding the iconic It's a Small World ride... weeks after a horror log flume incident at the park raised concerns about safety.

According to a new report from the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, a 54-year-old man suffered a cardiac emergency while riding the 'gentle' boat ride in April at Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

He was transported to a local hospital and later passed away. He had a pre-existing heart condition, per the report.

It's a Small World, which is one of the most famous Disney attractions, is described as a 'whimsical' and 'gentle' boat ride that allows guests to travel through all seven continents.

'Pass through vivid, fantastical scenes representing the iconic sights and sounds of dozens of nations,' reads a description.

Along the way, guests pass an array of 'dancing' animatronic dolls that belt out the classic song It's a Small World (After All) in different languages. 

The ride was created for the 1964-1965 New York World's fair before it was sent to Disneyland in 1966.

It was then recreated for Disney World in 1971 and is one of the few opening-day attractions that still remain in the park.

Earlier this month, riders on It's a Small World had quite the scare when a fire broke out on the indoor boat ride.

Footage shared on TikTok showed guests evacuating the attraction as plumes of dark smoke rose around the vibrant cityscape backdrop. 

A Disney employee was also seen using a fire extinguisher to put out any flames that were said to be caused by a guest's portable phone charger.

According to reports, the ride was shut down but re-opened by mid-afternoon. There appeared to be no injuries.

It comes just weeks after a terrifying incident on a ride over at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, sparked serious concerns about safety.

On June 21, a 13-year-old boy plunged down a 50-foot drop on Tiana's Bayou Adventure after he exited the ride vehicle in the middle of the attraction. 

Video footage published by TMZ appeared to show the boy falling down the track behind the log ride full of other people.

Thankfully, the boy did not suffer any critical injuries and was transferred to a hospital as a 'precaution.' He was evaluated and released.

California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, better known as Cal/OSHA, inspected the attraction afterwards and approved it to open the following day.

The log flume does not have seatbelts or lap bars and after the incident, many people raised questions about the lack of restraints in the wake of the incident.

'I'm surprised they haven't installed lap bars/seatbelts to prevent such a thing from happening in the first place,' one person wrote online. 'Almost every other ride has a safety restraint in place.'

'When I loaded my four-year-old into the Tiana ride boat, I was panicked when it occurred to me that the boat didn't have restraints,' admitted another.

'It has always surprised me that lap bars have never been installed on this ride; especially, since it's a single-file ride and kids can't clutch their parents,' someone else added.

'An incident like this and reopening the next day like nothing happened just doesn't seem right to me,' read a fourth post.

A fifth said: 'Truly insane that someone could fall down the drop, remain alive, and the ride reopens the next day without investigation.' 

'Rapids rides have [seatbelts], so why not flumes?' questioned a different user.