Ga. Commissioner’s Office Investigating as Six Flags Closes 10 Rides After Fatality
Six Flags Entertainment Corp. has temporarily closed 10 rides at seven of its amusement parks, and the Georgia insurance commissioner’s office and local police are investigating after a man fell to his death from a roller coaster.
Cobb County Police identified the victim as Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, 42, according to Bloomberg News and WSB-TV. Witnesses said the man appeared to slip from his seat on the Goliath roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia Park in Austell, outside Atlanta, then fell backwards and injured other riders before he landed on a structure below, news sites reported.
Here’s a look at other fatalities and injuries on U.S. roller coasters in recent years:
The park in Southern California announced last month that it was retiring its famous X2 roller coaster following lawsuits alleging riders suffered serious brain injuries. The park settled one wrongful-death lawsuit with the family of a 22-year-old rider who was rushed to a hospital with severe brain bleeding in 2022. He died a day later. The medical examiner’s office determined he died from “blunt head trauma.” Six Flags Entertainment Corp. said the ride had consistently passed safety tests.
A medical examiner concluded last year that a man who was unresponsive after riding a roller coaster at the Universal Orlando Resort park died from blunt impact injuries. Joshua Stephany, the medical examiner for the Orlando area, ruled the death an accident. The man in his 30s was found unresponsive after riding Stardust Racers.
In 2013, a woman riding a roller coaster in Texas died after she was thrown from her seat, fell 75 feet (23 meters) and struck a metal beam. Witnesses said the woman expressed concern about the Texas Giant roller coaster’s safety bar not completely engaging as the ride was starting.
A U.S. Army veteran who lost both legs in Iraq was killed in 2011 after he was thrown from a roller coaster at Darien Lake Theme Park & Resort in upstate New York. Investigators said operators did not follow rules posted at the ride’s entrance, which require that riders have both legs.
A 21-year-old rider fell to her death from a roller coaster at the amusement park in Louisiana in 2010. A state investigation could not determine a cause.
In 2003, a locomotive broke loose from a train on the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad roller coaster in California, killing a man and injuring multiple other riders. The car derailed after a guide wheel fell off. State investigators found the wheel was not tightened according to Disney’s standards and a safety wire was not installed.
[/sidebar]
The state Office of Insurance, led by Commissioner John King, oversees inspections on amusement park and carnival rides.
“Our investigative team is conducting an in‑depth and comprehensive review to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident and to ensure full compliance with all applicable policies and procedures,” Press Secretary Garrison Bennett told The Center Square news site in an email.
At a debate Tuesday, King, who is running for re-election, said his office had inspected the coaster ride.
“Our very professional inspectors have inspected every one of those before the park season even started, and they’re currently on the ground looking at every nook and cranny, conducting interviews and conducting a thorough review of what happened,” King said at the debate, according to WXIA TV news.
King’s office posted an update Oct. 15. on its website.
Six Flags officials said the company has temporarily closed the ride and nine others “out of an abundance of caution,” Bloomberg reported. The company said last month that it would permanently close the X2 coaster at its Magic Mountain Park in Valencia, California, after other alleged injuries, Bloomberg News reported.
The Dordick Law Corp. has said that three clients have sued Six Flags after allegedly suffering catastrophic brain injuries as a result of the X2 ride. The firm said it has retained more than 100 clients who have claimed injury.
Six Flags said the X2 ride had passed a multitude of safety tests.
The price of shares in Six Flags, which bills itself as the largest owner of regional theme parks in the US, fell 17% Tuesday to their lowest level since the COVID-19 epidemic caused parks to close worldwide, Bloomberg reported.
In Florida, SeaWorld Orlando closed its Mako roller coaster, which was built by the same company, Bolliger & Mabillard, that had constructed the Six Flags Over Georgia ride, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
Top photo: The Goliath coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia. (AP Photo/Emilie Megnien)