ORLANDO, Fla. _ Throughout its nearly 50-year history, Walt Disney World has closed briefly a handful of times from looming hurricanes and the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but late Thursday, the company announced it would shut down for nearly two weeks starting Sunday because of the coronavirus pandemic _ an unprecedented move.
"It's truly uncharted territory," said long-time theme park reporter Robert Niles, who had earlier anticipated the closure in Orlando, which happened four hours after Disney said it will also shut down Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif.
At Disney World, the four theme parks will shut down although the hotels and the Disney Springs shopping center will remain open.
"In an abundance of caution and in the best interest of our guests and employees, we are proceeding with the closure of our theme parks," Disney said in a statement. "We will continue to stay in close contact with appropriate officials and health experts."
The Disney Cruise Line is suspending all new departures starting Saturday as well.
"It's the right thing to do. Safety and health comes first. Revenue and profit comes second," said Dennis Speigel, the president of the International Theme Park Services after he heard the news late Thursday.
It had surprised him Disney World acted so quickly, although it was clear Disneyland had set the precedent in the U.S. market, Speigel said.
The announcement comes on the heels of Disney parks being closed in Asia. Shanghai Disneyland and Hong Kong Disneyland have been out of operation since late January, and the two theme parks at Tokyo Disney resort have been shuttered since Feb. 29. On Thursday, Disneyland and Disneyland Paris were added to that list. By the end of Thursday night so was Disney World.
"In my tenure in the industry, I think it's the worst case of fear, and rightly so, I've ever seen fall upon us and it's because of the unknown," Speigel said.
Meanwhile, Disney World theme park employees, which make up the largest work force in Orlando, will continue to get paid. Employees who are able to in other company divisions are asked to work remotely.
Concerns have escalated in the U.S., and changes have been made to schedules for large events across the country. Some officials have restricted gatherings of more than 1,000 people. The NBA and Major League Soccer have suspended their schedules.
The closings of Disney World parks have been scattered throughout the resort's 48-year history. The cause has usually been hurricanes that forced operations to halt for a day or two. The theme parks were closed in September 1999 for Hurricane Floyd and three times in 2004 as Charley, Frances and Jeanne passed by. Matthew (2016) and Irma (2017) also prompted closures.
The parks also closed on Sept. 11, 2001, after terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C.
