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Six Flags has temporarily closed nine similar roller coasters across North America after a man was ejected from his seat and fell to his death at Six Flags Over Georgia, with witnesses describing the horror as he appeared to hover above the car before hitting several people.
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The man, identified by Cobb County police as 42-year-old Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, an Atlanta school employee, was killed on Monday while riding Goliath, the park's tallest coaster with a first drop of 200 feet. Witnesses said he fell headfirst back into the coaster before being thrown from the ride on its final turn.
"It looked like he was hovering because the car was moving underneath him," said Nick Mendenhall, who had just ridden Goliath with his son. He said it felt like slow motion, and he prayed the man would stay in the car.
Goliath does not take riders upside down and has no seat belts, relying on lap bars that pull down over legs and waist. A family at the park said they noticed the restraints did not feel secure.
Police and Georgia's Office of Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner, which oversees ride inspections, are investigating. In the US, major amusement parks are not regulated by the federal government; oversight falls to states, and Florida's largest theme parks are exempt from state safety inspections.
Six Flags shut down coasters at six parks in the US and Canada, including another Goliath at Six Flags Magic Mountain in California, Raging Bull in Illinois, Nitro in New Jersey, Fury 325 and Thunder Striker at Carowinds, and Leviathan and Behemoth at Canada's Wonderland. The company did not say why those rides were closed or what would be done before reopening.
Bolliger & Mabillard, the Swiss manufacturer, said it is actively investigating and would not comment until it better understands what happened.
