Body of Lane Graves, 2, recovered after alligator drags boy into water at Disney hotel in Orlando, Florida

The child was on the edge of the lagoon when the alligator dragged him into the water, according to the boy's family, said Florida Fish & Wildlife executive director Nick Wiley. He cautioned that the investigation is still in an early stage and that officials need to interview at least two other families who may have witnessed the incident.

Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings said the child was "wading ... along the lake's edge at the time that the alligator attacked."

Williamson said the boy was in less than a foot of water.

One employee at the resort who did not want to be identified said in an email "There is such a problem on property with guests feeding the alligators thinking it's cool." There are two at the Buena Vista Palace that people regularly feed from balconies, he said.

Witnesses, as well as Florida Fish & Wildlife officials, reported that the alligator could have been up to 7 feet long.

There are "No Swimming" signs at the lagoon. "My understanding is that he was not swimming," said Williamson.

“Everyone here at Walt Disney World Resort is devastated by this tragic accident," said Jacquee Wahler, vice president of the Walt Disney World Resort. "Our thoughts are with the family and we are helping the family and doing everything we can to assist them."

The reptile grabbed the toddler Tuesday evening as the boy played in about a foot of water at the Seven Seas Lagoon at the Grand Floridian Hotel with his father.

"The father entered the water, and he tried to grab the child, but was not successful in doing so," Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings told reporters at an early morning news conference.

Walt Disney World closed beaches at its Florida resorts Wednesday while dozens of rescuers searched a lagoon for a 2-year-old boy who was presumed dead after being snatched off the shore and dragged underwater by an alligator.

Wildlife officials removed five alligators from the water and cut them open but found no sign of the child.

Demings identified the boy as Lane Graves of Elkhorn, Nebraska.

The search team grew to 50 people Wednesday as trappers and divers searched Disney's network of man-made canals, ponds and lakes. At least five other alligators were caught and cut open before they found the killer.

This video, of an employee trying to fight off a gator next to the theme park's famed Splash Mountain ride in 2009, is more evidence the company has been aware of the problem for some time.

The family — including their four-year-old daughter, Ella — returned to their home in Elkhorn, Nebraska on Thursday afternoon, and have obviously been in an intense period of grief and mourning since.

Matt and Melissa Graves say they’ll focus on a charitable foundation to honor their son Lane and the “future health of their family” instead.