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Disneyland, Universal Studios Hollywood, offering free tickets to firefighters

Two Southern California theme parks are offering free tickets to firefighters and other first responders as a way to say thank you for their work in combating the deadly and destructive wildfires that ravaged the area for the last month.

Universal Studios Hollywood announced their "First Responder Heroes Ticket Offer" on Jan. 31. 

"To thank those who assisted our community, all eligible active U.S.-based first responders can enjoy one complimentary general admission ticket and a 50% savings on up to three additional tickets, now through April 10, 2025," said the park's website.

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The offer is available to "eligible active U.S. based first responders at either a public or private agency/entity," including paramedics/emergency medical technicians, firefighters, police officers/Sherriff's deputies, and National Guard members, said Universal Studios Hollywood. 

"The selfless dedication and tireless resilience exhibited by the first responders in response to combating the L.A. wildfires has been nothing short of extraordinary and we are very grateful to these unsung heroes for their courage during this difficult time," Scott Strobl, the executive vice president and general manager of Universal Studios Hollywood said in a statement. 

Strobl continued, "When these first responders are ready for a much needed break, we look forward to welcoming them to our theme park."

Tickets can only be picked up in person and first responders must show a "valid government-issued photo ID and valid employee ID card for qualifying first responder occupation," said Universal Studios Hollywood.

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On Feb. 7, Disneyland announced a similar offer for local first responders, calling it the "Heroes Ticket." The "Heroes Ticket" is two free one-day "park hopper" tickets, which include entry to both Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure. 

"We are inspired by the endless dedication and contributions of the heroes who battled the fires that took place in the LA area, and our gratitude for their service is immeasurable," said Ken Potrock, president of Disneyland Resort, in a statement released by Disneyland. 

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"We hope these heroes can enjoy a memorable day with a loved one at our parks, because they certainly deserve it," said Potrock. 

The Heroes Ticket is available for "eligible California firefighters as well as eligible Los Angeles-based law enforcement personnel and emergency medical technicians who helped combat the LA fires in January 2025," said the release from Disneyland. "The Heroes Ticket will also be available to eligible individuals from other departments that provided mutual aid assistance." 

The complementary tickets will be valid Mondays through Thursdays from May 5 through Aug. 7, 2025, said Disneyland, and will require a theme park reservation. 

Additional information will be sent to eligible fire, police, and sheriff departments in April, said the press release. 

Fired Disney World employee pleads guilty to hacking menu, removing life-saving allergy information

A former Disney World Resort employee has pleaded guilty to hacking into one of the company's computer systems and removing life-saving allergy information from restaurant menus. 

Michael Scheuer was fired on June 13, 2024 for his alleged misconduct. He worked as a menu production manager, and his termination was considered "contentious and…not considered to be amicable," according to a federal court complaint.

Scheuer has pleaded guilty to knowingly transmitting a program, information, code, and command and intentionally causing damage without authorization to a protected computer and aggravated identity theft, according to a Jan. 10 court plea agreement. 

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In a statement to Fox News Digital, Scheuer's attorney, David Haas, said his client "is prepared to accept responsibility for his conduct."

"Unfortunately, he has mental health issues that were exacerbated when Disney fired him upon his return from paternity leave," he added. "No one was ever at risk of injury and he is deeply remorseful for what happened."

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Federal prosecutors said Scheuer, who they called a "threat actor," was responsible for the creation and distribution of all restaurant menus for the company, including the digital menus. None of the changes made it on to the printed or digital versions of the menus, but they did result in $150,000 in damages, the company said, according to a complaint. 

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"Namely, the threat actor manipulated the allergen information on menus by adding information to some allergen notifications that indicated certain menu items were safe for individuals with peanut allergies, when in fact they could be deadly to those with peanut allergies," the complaint states. 

The allergen alterations focused on peanut, tree nut, shellfish and milk allergens, prosecutors said. 

"More specifically, the threat actor added notations to menu items indicating they were safe for people with specific allergies, which has potentially fatal consequences depending on the severity of the customers’ allergies," prosecutors said. "It is believed these menus were identified and isolated by Company A prior to being shipped out to restaurants and were not distributed further."

In addition, Scheuer also added profanity and changed the pricing of some items on the menus, Fox Orlando reported. He also allegedly sent multiple log-in requests, which prevented more than a dozen employees from being able to access their accounts and systems. 

He also changed fonts and caused some pages to be blank. In particular, Scheuer made changes to information about wines to replace geographic regions with the locations of "recent mass shootings," and embedded "a swastika" on menus, the filing says.

When questioned by investigators, he said he was being framed to cover up the conditions under which he was terminated, the complaint said. 

He faces up to 10 years in prison and thousands of dollars in fines.  

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