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Father grabbed alligator's snout to pry boy from reptile's mouth, report says

A new report released Monday about the deadly gator attack at a Walt Disney resort showed the father of the little boy attacked jumped on the alligator, punched and grabbed its snout to release his son, Orange County deputies said.

Lane Graves, 2, was scooping sand into a bucket near the water of the Seven Seas Lagoon at the Grand Floridian in June.

Several witnesses, including the boy’s parents, said they heard splashing and saw the alligator grab Graves by the head, deputies said.

The dad told investigators he did everything he could get the alligator to release his son.

A 16-year-old witness told deputies he couldn’t stop crying after seeing the attack, deputies said.

A lifeguard told investigators he first saw the child's shoes out in the water, then he saw the "alligator slash around and the shoes went under the water, and the alligator then began its death roll."

Another witness passed out after seeing the tragedy unfold, according to the report.

And when the young boy's parents sat down with investigators soon after the attack, the father told them, "We know he is gone,” deputies said.

The family who is from Nebraska, stayed in town until after their son's body was found the following day. Lane's body was intact not far from where the gator grabbed him.

Trappers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission killed six alligators and said they are “confident” they have gator responsible for the attack.

Since the attack, Disney officials have put up safety fences around its ponds, alligator warning signs and other safety measures.

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