- Jennifer Kapanka and her family planned a trip to Disney World nearly a year ago.
- The Kapanka family arrived at Disney World on Sunday, Oct. 6.
- The two Kapanka children would find their magical experience during Hurricane Milton.
- Jennifer said the family felt safe at the resort and made preparations.
Florida residents were preparing for Hurricane Milton to arrive as one Texas family arrived in Florida to have the Disney experience. Jennifer Kapanka of Corpus Christi and her family arrived at Disney World on Sunday, Oct. 6 for a trip they planned nearly a year ago.
Kapanka, her husband and their two girls ages seven and four were excited for the trip. This would be the children’s first time at Disney World.
“We are big Disney people so we wanted our two little ones to experience the magic that is Disney World. And, a little thing like a hurricane isn’t going to stop all the fun,” Jennifer Kapanka said.
Kapanka is the owner of Kelly Rose Creations in Corpus Christi. Her family is a big Disney family.
“When we heard that Milton was coming this way it was still 'We’re going to Disney. We’re going to have a great time.' Disney World has its own generators. Its own power sourcing here. And, so, we knew that this area would be very safe to be doing the storm,” Jennifer said.
She said restaurants and rides were open, there were lots of activities for the kids, and the park had made preparations for the storm. The family also made preparations, they ordered extra supplies and moved the girls’ bed away from the windows.
“The biggest thing that we have done is we have moved the bed that they’re sleeping on. They’re sleeping on a pullout sofa. We have moved that last night away from the windows in our room. And that kind of in the middle of the hotel room. We wanted to make sure that they would hear less of the wind,” Jennifer said.
Since they arrived, Jennifer told us, they’ve seen rain and wind increase on Tuesday, and stronger showers on mid-Wednesday.
Hurricane Milton made landfall as an intense category 3 storm Wednesday evening near the City of Siesta Key on Florida’s West Coast, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Hurricane Milton is the ninth hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season which runs from June 1st through November 30th.
“Truthfully, if we knew there was another hurricane coming and we had this planned we would come regardless. I truly feel, my husband truly feels that this is a really safe place to be. They take great care of us at the Disney resorts and it’s been really great. I know that people in Orlando have lost power and there’s a whole mess out there, but we have only experienced some down tree branches. We had some leaves stuck to the windows this morning. But everything, for us here at the park, has been very great,” Jennifer said.
The family is expected to come back to Texas on Saturday, but that will depend on Hurricane Milton’s aftermath.
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