In October 2024, the TikTok account Mouse Trap News published a video claiming Walt Disney World was testing out a hurricane defense system amid Hurricane Milton hitting Florida.
The TikTok video's narrator claimed:
Disney World is testing a new hurricane defense system. The goal is to lessen the impact of Hurricane Milton on Disney World. This is a brand new technology that Disney has created in partnership with the U.S. government and SpaceX. According to an internal source, this technology has been in the works with Disney for the past seven years but has not been used yet. It will utilize huge magnetic coils that are scattered around Disney World property as well as magnetic coils that were launched into space last year with SpaceX. These coils will break up the storm and lessen the impact.
This could be game-changing technology if it works. The good news is we have been assured that this defense system is safe for humans to be around, which was our biggest concern. This new hurricane defense system isn't expected to stop the storm, but Disney is hopeful that it will reduce the amount of wind and flood damage on property and across central Florida.
We don't know how much Disney spent on this technology or if there were U.S. government grants involved, however, if it's successful, we can expect Disney to sell this technology and capitalize on the benefits it brings.
However, none of the claims made in the video are true. The footage originated from a TikTok account that describes its output as being satirical in nature, as follows: "Real Disney News That is 100% FAKE."
Mouse Trap News also published an article about the satirical news on its website, where it similarly describes its content as "satire and parody":
Mouse Trap News is the world's best satire and parody site. We write fake stories about Disney Parks stuff. From Disney Park announcements to Disney Hotel and resort news to made-up Disney partnerships, you can be assured that anything you read here is not true, real, or accurate, but it is fun. So technically our slogan The Moused Trusted Name in Disney News isn't true, but we thought it was creative and funny, so we are running with it.
Mouse Trap News was created on a whim to have some fun and write stories about Disney we wish were true. Some Disney sites write deceptive stories for clicks. We write 100% made-up parody and satire stories for your enjoyment. We also hope that Disney sees how much people like some of our stories and decide to actually make one of our stories a reality!
In the article on the website, Mouse Trap News added, "Disney was planning on testing it with Hurricane Ian [occurring in September 2022], which we reported on here, however, they never went through with it. In fact, that hurricane destroyed Spaceship Earth, which we reported on here."
Hurricane Milton resulted in power outages affecting around 3 million people and caused around eight deaths as of this writing. Disney's theme park shut down for around two days but reopened on Oct. 11, 2024.
For background, here is why we alert readers to rumors created by sources that call their output humorous or satirical.