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In a disturbing revelation, Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) expressed his outrage on Thursday following a shocking report that unveiled the tragic demise of 31 sloths. These creatures, intended to be the stars of a new tourist attraction called Sloth World in Orlando, Fla., succumbed to horrific conditions even before the venue opened its doors to the public.
Originating from the lush rainforests of South America, the sloths met their untimely end in a storage warehouse between December 2024 and February 2025. This grim detail emerged from an incident report filed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
In a statement on social media platform X, Frost condemned the circumstances, saying, “These sloths — naturally solitary animals — were put in the worst conditions possible. They were taken from their natural habitats to a packed warehouse that wasn’t properly heated and allowed for the spread of deadly viruses, leading to a stress-induced death.”
The report further detailed that Peter Bandre, who owned the facility at the time, confessed to inspectors that 21 of the sloths, transported from Guyana, perished due to a “cold stun.” This occurred because the facility was ill-prepared for the sloths’ arrival amidst December’s frigid temperatures. Compounding the tragedy, the warehouse lacked essential amenities such as water and electricity, instead relying on heaters powered by an extension cord from an adjacent building.
According to the report, Bandre admitted that though the building was inadequately prepared for the sloths, the shipment had progressed too far to be halted. The revelation underscores a dire need for better regulatory oversight to prevent such tragedies from recurring.
The other 10 sloths arrived from Peru four days after the first batch, with two sloths dead on arrival. The others died from poor health issues after appearing emaciated.
Frost said he was looking into the tragedy and would coordinate with local officials to determine how to best move forward.
“I’ve called on the Secretary of Agriculture and USDA to investigate Sloth World, protect any surviving sloths, and prevent more from being brought in,” Frost said in a follow-up X post Friday. “We cannot allow this to continue.”
Sloth World said it had been “managing a difficult situation regarding a foreign virus” and has worked tirelessly to address it, alongside their veterinarian, the Florida Department of Agriculture and other outside experts, according to a statement to central Florida’s Fox 35 on Monday.
But Sloth World also told Fox 35, “We are aware of rumors such as claiming that our sloths were ‘cold-stunned’ or left without water and electricity.”
“These claims are entirely false. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission conducted a thorough inspection of our facility just last week, found absolutely no wrongdoings, and fully renewed our license,” the statement said.
An inspector with Orange County’s Building Safety on Thursday issued a “stop work” order at the warehouse after visiting the building, according to Fox 35. It determined that it appeared animals were being stored without a permit, but it was unclear if sloths were actively in the building.