r/news • u/Bloated_Hamster • 6h ago
Visitor dies after accident on Goliath at Six Flags Over Georgia
https://www.waff.com/2026/10/12/visitor-dies-after-accident-goliath-six-flags-over-georgia/3.9k
u/madeinjapan89 6h ago
Assuming he rode that with family/friends that had to be horrifying to watch him hit the coaster multiple times.
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u/Defacto_Champ 5h ago
The local news video out of Georgia on 11 alive said the son of the passenger who flew out of his seat was next to him on the ride
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u/Sidewalk_Tomato 5h ago
Goddammit. Hard enough losing a parent, worse to have PTSD from the violence and suddenness of it happening right there next to you. And now so many people have seen it.
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u/MarlenaEvans 3h ago
And losing them like that on a day where things were especially fun and exciting. There's no good time to lose someone but the emotional whiplash has to be horrible.
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u/Dont-Really-Matter 2h ago
Poor kid is never going to an amusement park ever again, that's for sure.
I don't think anyone there will tbh.
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u/Sidewalk_Tomato 2h ago
I specifically worry that he will blame himself if he was super hype to go to the park, or on the ride. He & his family are going to need so much therapy.
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u/Dont-Really-Matter 2h ago
Dude it took me months to mentally get over a car accident that I literally did not contribute to in any way. I can't imagine how they are feeling 😢
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u/BearHoonie 5h ago
Yea just watched the same video. The mother and daughter were at the bottom waiting. The son was next to him when he flew out. He hit a girl a few rows back.
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u/MzOpinion8d 1h ago
The 12 yr old brother of the boy who was decapitated at Schlitterbahn was waiting at the bottom of the ride when the boy’s body got to the end.
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u/anaccount50 2h ago edited 1h ago
I’ve seen the photos and his son (EDIT: not confirmed that was his son, there’s another smaller person on the other side of him too) had his head turned towards him when it happened. That poor child, I really hope he gets a ton of professional help with dealing with something so terrible
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u/Much_Discipline_7303 1h ago
I also feel for the person who sat to the right of the victim. You can see the look of pure horror on his face
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u/InvertedJennyanydots 2h ago
That's a horror movie scenario that his poor son just experienced in real life.. I hope counseling is immediately made available to him, though I fear Six Flags will fear that offering it is an admission of liability. I hope someone is getting the son connected to immediate therapy though. They were just trying to have a nice day as a family at a theme park. It's just incredibly sad.
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u/hmtee3 2h ago
That child’s face is heartbreaking in the photo.
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u/ohhhaley 1h ago
Yeah, it’s a whole other level of devastating. I feel bad saying I wish I hadn’t seen the photo, when the young man had to see his dad plummet to his death. I sincerely hope the family gets an astronomical payout after suing the park and ride manufacturer.
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u/SweetandSourCaroline 6h ago
I am an ATlien and someone who was there / posting on the local subs said that it was very graphic and it was at the spot where it takes the photos 😭
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u/--i--love--lamp-- 5h ago edited 4h ago
There is a 99.9% chance there is video of it on the park cameras. Hopefully they will keep it off the internet. It is so sad.
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u/reddit_username014 2h ago
My first mistake was obviously scrolling on twitter, but unfortunately I saw this reported there first - with pictures. Not only is it absolutely tragic, but people are also blaming the victim for shutting down the ride and park, among many racist comments.
People are just sick, and I sincerely hope that the family can find peace from this.
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u/BotF_Latyon 5h ago
It's usually other visitors who post the videos online
Just gotta hope nobody was pointing a camera at it in the crowd.
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u/Krandor1 5h ago
actually one of the passengers who was on the train said the on-ride photos of them caught the man flying in the picture.
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u/Starsbythep0cketful 4h ago
I saw it on TikTok a few minutes ago. The photo itself is not graphic. Very sad
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u/anaccount50 2h ago edited 2h ago
It’s not graphic in the sense that you don’t see any blood or gore or anything , but it’s still pretty disturbing. Unless you’re acclimated to seeing photos/videos of people dying I wouldn’t recommend people look it up
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u/gardenpoblano 1h ago
That’s probably the healthiest thing we can do for our mental health is NOT seek that out. Also it’s more respectful for the dead and grieving.
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u/20_mile 5h ago
It's usually other visitors who post the videos online
The internet has insatiable need for content. Even people commenting to say "this is horrible!" feeds the algorithm.
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u/KWilt 4h ago
To be fair, Faces of Death predates the internet by about 15 years. This isn't a uniquely online phenomenon. There's just a certain section of humanity that likes to watch macrabe things.
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u/Plane_Garbage 4h ago
A rider posted an on-ride photo of him coming out of the restraint.
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u/roxy_dee 5h ago
Unfortunately some shots of him falling out during the ride photo are circulating ):
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u/Mysterious-Zombie-86 5h ago
Haven't seen any video but there is pictures from it showing him falling
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u/KateA535 3h ago
Apparently the ride photos have made it on to the internet so be careful
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u/KaptainKlein 4h ago
He was visible on the photos, they're making their rounds on social media now and it's pretty horrifying. Not gory but pretty upsetting
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u/Iamlizardhearnepurr 5h ago
It was there’s photos on x of it happening. Extremely chilling and seeing the restraint open like that on a b and m is scary.
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u/bad-and-bluecheese 5h ago
I saw the on ride photos earlier. They're not graphic but they are horrifying
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u/Kevin-W 2h ago
Atlanta resident here as well. The photo is horrifying and it's a huge story on the news here right now. Bear in mind that Six Flags itself has been facing a number of issues post-merge and I'm hoping this is the straw that breaks the camel's back and forces major reforms within the company from top to bottom.
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u/fioreman 2h ago
I work nearby and drive by it on my way form work every day, around 40 minutes after it happened.
Traffic was nuts, and I saw the cars stuck on the ride getting on I-20, and didn't think much about it.
That was a fun roller coaster but I this is gonna do it for my roller coaster career.
This isn't the first death at Six Flags Over Georgia from a ride.
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u/DonyellFreak 6h ago
Rest in peace to the person that lost their life.
What a traumatic day for anyone in attendance as well.
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u/Laiko_Kairen 4h ago edited 4h ago
In the 1990s, a person died in the Goliath at Six Flags Magic Mountain. I just happened to have tickets for the next day. The park was empty. We're talking, 1 minute lines for rides that usually took 20. I just stayed in a coaster once when there was no line.
As a kid, I had to time of my life. As an adult, I feel guilty for enjoying results of a death
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u/PurpleSailor 3h ago
Was at 6 Flags Great Adventure in the early 80's the day after 8 teens lost their lives in the Haunted Mansion fire. I don't think we waited any more than a minute or two to get on any ride at all. The area was closed off and you could still smell the smoke and the area was crawling with investigators. We talked a lot about going or not but eventually we decided to go because Summer was approaching and it was unlikely that we'd all have the time off again until September.
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u/abagail3492 3h ago
Reminds me of this YouTube video of a guy who visits locations after terrorist attacks.
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u/dorkofthepolisci 6h ago
What are the odds the restrained failed to lock?
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u/pjs32000 5h ago edited 44m ago
Very low but not impossible. Restraints are all designed with redundancy, meaning at least 2 safety mechanisms would have to have failed at the same time for a complete restraint failure to occur. Even without seatbelts there would be some form of redundancy. Reports are this is a ratcheting lap bar so it likely had at least 2 pins locking it down to the ratchet bar/gear. The odds of both failing simultaneously are extremely low, but not impossible.
We won't know the cause until they complete an investigation. Many times with incidents like this there are a number of contributing factors. Examples could be maintenance, ride operations or operators, rider behavior or characteristics (height, size, etc), manufacturing defects, mechanical failure, design errors, etc. Often times multiple small things contribute or go unnoticed until they compound or reach a failure that puts something beyond its tolerances and results in total failure.
These are all hypothetical examples and not a complete list of possibilities. It is not fair to assume or assign blame to anyone for this specific incident until more facts are known as a result of an investigation.
Edit: by very low I mean like 1 in well over a million. It's likely one in tens or hundreds of millions but since I don't know the real number I will not cite an exact figure. You're far more likely to get injured in your car on the way to ride the roller coaster. Its also worth noting that the manufacturer of this ride, B&M, has had an impeccable safety record until now (and still might, depending on the investigation results) and has been in this business for decades.
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u/LegendOfBobbyTables 5h ago
Once the investigation is complete and information is published, the YouTube channel Coaster College will likely have a very detailed and complete breakdown of what went wrong without including any gory details. He does a great job making ride accident videos if you are interested in that type of thing.
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u/pjs32000 5h ago
Yes I'm familiar and have watched his other videos. I appreciate that he does not embellish or add subjectivity, and sticks to the available facts.
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u/kheret 4h ago edited 4h ago
People are very very bad at assessing risk. You’ll have tons of people swearing off roller coasters forever as a result of this, and that’s fine and makes sense, but then they’ll get in boats, or jump off a diving board, or get on an ATV, hike in wet weather, or do any number of recreational activities that claim victims annually but don’t make the news.
If this death was a true mechanical failure, it’s the first such rollercoaster death in the US since 2003. Terrifying and a cause for concern, absolutely, but you really have to understand how many millions (ok, 10s of thousands) of rollercoaster rides happen every day. (And probably millions per week)
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u/pjs32000 4h ago
True, it's just human nature. I don't fault others for avoiding something if it makes them feel unsafe, even if the data says otherwise. Personally, learning the details about how coasters are designed and operated makes me feel even more safe than just knowing the percentages.
Ironically sometimes the lowest risk is immediately after something like this happens. Ride operators will be aware of this incident and will more meticulous than usual during routine inspections, and if modifications are necessary due to the root cause of this incident no coaster will be operational until that's been implemented.
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u/Ornery-Distance-8680 6h ago
My shoulder restraint came undone on The Batman at Six Flags STL. The only thing holding me on was that flimsy seatbelt and the death grip I had on the handles. I told the employees and they shrugged.
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u/Coldpastalord 6h ago
That’s fucked up, genuinely. Did you tell park services? People in charge of lives should not have that reaction when someone almost dies
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u/Ornery-Distance-8680 6h ago
No, I was a teen on a group trip when it happened in the early 2000s. Reporting it to anyone else never crossed my mind.
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u/Pikkumyy2023 4h ago
My first "real" rollercoaster ride was on a camp trip to Coney Island as a pre-teen. The ride only had lap bars (no loops thankfully) but mine didn't lock, and no one heard me and they started the ride anyway. Definitely have never clung that hard to anything before.
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u/llamasama 2h ago
Holy shit. This just triggered a deep memory of mine that's been locked away for YEARS.
At Dorney park or Hershey park, almost 30 years ago at this point, I was on the wooden rollercoaster there (the hurricane?) with my dad in the seat next to me.
As we were going down the first hill, the metal restraint bar across my lap snapped open and I panicked hard. My dad grabbed the bar in a split, braced himself against the car, and slammed that shit right back down. He held it there the entire ride as the cart tried to yeet my ass onto the macadam.
Shit was horrifying.
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u/sagew0lf 3h ago
okay there's a chance this was just a dream, but I swear I have a memory of waiting in line for the Batman in St. Louis in the earlyish 2000s. The ride was starting and there was this kid or maybe early teenage boy and his shoulder harness wasn't clicking while the train pulled away. I remember him shaking his shoulder restraints and they eventually clicked into place but, like... it was touch and go there for a while.
...any chance that was you? lol
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u/templeofsyrinx1 6h ago edited 6h ago
I had that happen one time, it wasn't as crazy as this, but it was only a seatbelt lap harness was no where near enough and it was like something out of one of those nightmares where you are falling and about to die . I was literally holding myself in. Not fun.
But this is grisly. Feel sorry for the people that had to see that and for the victim.
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u/2kids3kats 6h ago
I worked security for Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey in ‘87 or ‘88, and a young woman did fall out and die after her seatbelt failed on one of rides. It was so awful.
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u/clover-the-clever 6h ago
Lightning Loops or Rolling Thunder?
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u/2kids3kats 6h ago
It was the loops. What I really remember was that she was aware she wasn’t buckled in, and looked at her boyfriend who was seated next to her and said “oh god, Rick…” before she fell. Horrible.
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u/BotF_Latyon 5h ago
Like that kid who rode that Orlando free fall ride and knew the entire way up that he was going to die when it dropped and he kept saying to tell his grandma he loves her
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u/DirtAndSurf 5h ago
Oh my God. I'm so sorry you had to see that and know what you know about it. And her poor family and boyfriend.
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u/FourEyesAndThighs 2h ago
When I was 13 I went on a ride at Elitch Gardens in Denver that basically suspended you upside down for several seconds at a time. When it did, you could hear literally everything falling out of people's pockets, down to the ground below.
I was so skinny that the lap harness couldn't be made snug against my body, but I didn't know any better. I caught myself slipping out of the lap harness and could feel myself about to fall forward out of the restraint. I started screaming because I was halfway out of it, but thankfully the two guys next to me held my shirt so I didn't fall 50 feet to the ground. The ride flipped us over like that several times, and each time I thought I was going to fall and die.
When we got down I went to the manager or supervisor with my mom to tell them what happened, and they didn't care at all. Elitch Gardens is still boycotted in our family to this day.
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u/2HDFloppyDisk 6h ago
Similar experience at Bush Gardens with my legs dangling and my arms holding me in. Never again.
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u/DanMasterson 6h ago
Alpengeist? Was always my favorite.
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u/Healthy_You867 5h ago
Omg. That is the scariest one that I have ever ridden. I cannot imagine a restraint not working.
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u/The_Ghost_Face36 6h ago
That happened to my classmate when we went to six flags for our 8th grade trip. Restraint came undone and only the little side seatbelt thing and him holding on for dear life saved him.
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u/cherriosoup 5h ago edited 5h ago
edit: apparently they modified the restraints after the accident but didn't add shoulder bars
I had a similar experience as a kid on the Superman Ride of Steel coaster at Six Flags Darien Lake in the early 2000's!!
I was maaaybe 10 years old and just barely met the requirements to ride it. I was with my brother and ecstatic to finally ride it. Back then they had just the lap bars and a seatbelt on that coaster, which is crazy now that I think of it years later.
Anyways we started going down the first hill and I basically levitated out of my seat as soon as we started catching speed/air. Thank God my brother noticed and he held me in the seat and told me to hold onto the bar as hard as I could, which I did. He had his arm across me holding onto the bar the entire ride and the whole time I was slipping past the lap bar, I would have absolutely slipped out if I wasn't holding on/being held.
It was the sketchiest ride I ever had on a coaster and we told the attendees that there was no way I should have met the measurements to ride, or my lap bar wasn't secured down enough, whichever. They didn't care. It was years later I heard about that guy that fell out of the coaster (I know he was an amputee) and they ended up
switching the ride to have over shoulder restraints. It made me realize how close I was to actually dying that day and I had no idea...26
u/BonerJamz87 5h ago
I go to Darien Lake pretty frequently, and the Superman still has the lap bar that crushes your nuggets, lol. It never had the shoulder restraints.
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u/Stivils8 5h ago
Damn man, I have a very similar memory as a child. The seatbelt wouldn’t tighten and the lap bar didn’t come down far enough. Found out on the first hill holding on for dear life and tucked myself into the feet cubby for the rest of the ride. Tears while exiting.
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u/goth_duck_returns 5h ago
Pretty sure a veteran got flung out of that ride at some point
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u/Helmic 4h ago
Had that happen on one of those giant boat swings at a pop up fair, those really shoddy ones Nobody believed me when I explained why I was freaking out, the latch literally just locked and unlocked if you pushed down on it and the guy sitting next to us pushed down hard on it while the ride was in motion.
I do not go on any of those portable attractions anymore, I do not trust they have been secured to the ground or have any reasonable safety measures in place.
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u/randomthrowaway9796 5h ago
Crazy, I feel like that should be an immediate shutdown of the ride for investigation, or at minimum dont let anyone use that seat until its been investigated.
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u/goth_duck_returns 5h ago
I almost fell out of the X-Treme Swing at Valley Fair. I was 9, tall enough for the ride, but so skinny I was slipping out of the seat. My little Catholic ass was thinking about the prayer I'd be able to say on the way down 😭😭
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u/CaptainPussybeast 6h ago edited 5h ago
At the Six Flags coasters I worked at, the restraints are designed in a locked position, and when they're unlocked in the station for loading/unloading, they're actually being manipulated.
I suppose it's possible, but I assume the lap bar restraint on this specific ride wasn't close enough to their body. A lot of people intentionally try riding rides with loose restraints (not victim blaming here, just sharing past experiences..)
Horrible situation all around.
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u/AwwwMangos 4h ago
I’m a dad-bodded dad who’s ridden Goliath many times. Every time, the attendant would shove the restraint down as hard as they could, until I was barely able to breathe. But I get it, they have to do that. I know it’s for our own good, that ride pulls serious G’s.
Whether mechanical failure or some form of rider error, my heart absolutely breaks for the man’s family who were there, all the other riders who witnessed it, and those poor workers on that ride who are surely traumatized as well. Just a horrible tragedy.
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u/Optimus_Prime_Day 5h ago
Makes sense. Just like how elevators fail in the locked position rather than falling.
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u/Background-Safety365 5h ago
aren't a lot of these cases, the person was too large for the ride to be secured safely
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u/AwwwMangos 4h ago
Based on my experience on this ride, I think it’s the very small-waisted people who are most at risk of slipping up and out of the lap bar. I’ve said before I wouldn’t let my kids ride until they large enough in the middle, not just tall enough. Probably never after this.
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u/Dusty-Staccato 6h ago
I haven't been to Six Flags Over Georgia in about 10 years, but if I remember correctly, I think Goliath just has a lap bar to hold riders since there are no loops and it always felt a little dangerous
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u/cydril 6h ago
My skinny friend used to flex on everyone by worming his way out of the bar restraint before they unlocked it. It's definitely possible to fall.
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u/Lord-Thistlewick 5h ago
I did that on one of those carnival "ring of fire" rides that just go in a loop when I was a kid. Carny couldn't have cared less.
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u/Fly1nP4nda 4h ago
That's how I remember it and I recall on many circumstances where a rider was too large, they park employee had to basically forcibly sit to push the lap bar down to click in
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u/huntergreenhoodie 5h ago
Most modern roller coasters can't be dispatched unless all restraints are locked so, I'd think odds of it not locking are low. Best guess right now is poor maintenance but, I'm very curious to see the final investigation report.
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u/madamminum 5h ago edited 5h ago
I had my restraint come undone on a roller coaster years back and it was fucking terrifying. We were 100’ up at 55 mph with an 84’ drop — I was so lucky to have a friend strong enough to hold me down as I clung to him, but my ass left that seat several times and I truly thought I was going to die in front of everyone.
When we got off, I told the operators what happened. They were probably 18 or 19 and said they would “look into it”, but proceeded to load the next line on minutes later. I haven’t been on a ride since. Fuck that.
I am so, so sad for the family that went out for a day of fun and watched this happen. Just awful.
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u/HappyMeteor005 5h ago
the week the Goliath opened up at six flags, San antonio back in 2015, i think.. me and my buddies rode it. the bar that drops down failed on my buddies seat but the seat belt strap held. we told them and they had to shut the ride down.
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u/CU_09 5h ago
Goliath in Georgia doesn’t have a seat belt. Just the lap bar thing.
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u/radda 4h ago
Fun fact: that coaster was one of the only things salvaged from Six Flags New Orleans after it got hit by Katrina.
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u/calebeedude 5h ago
If you nerd out over coaster designs like I do, you’ll know it’s next to impossible, especially on one made by B&M.
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u/trireme32 5h ago
Yeah — I really wonder how many of the other anecdotes on here were a result of kids’ minds amplifying a level of danger combined with 20-year-old memories. Notice how pretty much all of them were “when I was a kid maybe 20 some odd years ago.” If all these anecdotes were actually 100% true about the danger they were in, then roller coaster deaths would be a lot more commonplace.
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u/kheret 4h ago
A lot of people think their restraints are “loose” when they’re in between lock points, and that’s probably a lot of what people are talking about.
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u/BrandyTheGorgs 6h ago edited 6h ago
Clearing potential confusion, the train stuck on the lift hill is not the the train that had the accident. The accident occurred at the end of the previous cycle, so when the train pulled into the station with a rider missing, the next train had already gone up the lift hill.
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u/Jedibug 5h ago
My wife went on a rollercoaster at The Lagoon in Utah back in 2018/19? It was the super acceleration ride that goes straight up. Her seat didn't get locked. Me and the other person next to her were able to hold down the bar so she didn't fall straight out on the corkscrew. But even with that extra force from two people, she was still lifted 6 inches off the seat almost sliding out of the seat.
The ride was closed for the rest of the day before we even complained. They knew. And someone was getting chewed out about letting us ride at all with a warning up on screen.
My wife was that close to dying because a teenager said "run it anyways"
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u/beerhandups 5h ago
That’s just terrible design. Why the hell is the launch button even live when there’s a warning? Lives shouldn’t have to rely on a teenager remembering their training.
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u/Safe-Winter9071 5h ago
I used to work at six flags great adventure and the coaster (skull mountain) I worked on literally would not launch unless the restraints were in place. Like you could try but the system wouldn't work. That was in 2009 so idk if its different for newer coasters.
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u/Jedibug 5h ago
In Utah they have literal children working these parks. I think 12 was or is the age limit for whatever reason. You maybe saw one adult in the vacinity of 2-3 rides
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u/lFightForTheUsers 3h ago
Utah is also one of only six states in the US that does not have any state laws based on ASTM standards (the international guidelines for amusement ride safety).
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u/newyne 4h ago edited 4h ago
Goliath at Six Flags Over Georgia is the only coaster I've ever ridden (aside from a kiddie coaster when I was about 5) (which still terrified me), and I felt like I was gonna come out of the seat even though the restraint was functional. Like I was in my late teens, but I was skinny, and I kept lifting off the seat... It felt like I could slide right out from under the restraint. Probably not, but it feels like I might've been pushing the limit. Turns out I hate coasters, anyway, so I don't feel like I'm missing anything by never going on them.
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u/DoublePostedBroski 6h ago
Someone fell out and hit the ride vehicle 3 times and then fell to the roof of a building. It was caught on the souvenir photos they take when you’re on it.
Someone in the ATL sub said they were on it and were splattered with blood.
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u/One-Emu-1103 6h ago
I can't imagine seeing someone being thrown out a coaster. That must have been horrifying. Six Flags needs to be investigated for these accidents
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u/Foe117 6h ago
Possible failures:
- Attendant failed to ensure the lap bar is secure on the person
- Maintenance Failure on lap bar locking mechanism, usually has a redundant hydraulic or mechanical system independent of each other if one side fails. Six Flags has been known to be cutting down on maintenance personnel and budgets in recent years, so it's likely train inspections were rushed or deferred.
- Rider intentionally misled attendant to think that they were secure to the ride due to youthful stupidity. They can do this by scooting forward with enough gap to squirm out of a harness if determined to do so.
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u/bestprocrastinator 5h ago
Adding one more thing. The manufacturer of this roller coaster, B&M is known as one of the most reliable and safe roller coaster makers in the entire industry. In fact, this is the first fatality that has ever happened on a B&M coaster that isn't related to preexisting medical conditions, or someone hopping over a restricted area fence.
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u/Lifesagame81 6h ago
Yeah, now that you mention the last one, I hope they didn't cheat the lap bar so they could partially stand or do some nonsense for the photo. That he fell in that spot makes me wonder
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u/CPFOAI 6h ago
The ride wouldn’t have left the station if the restraint wasn’t locked. If it did, that’s TWO failures from TWO separate systems on the ride.
Someone mentioned this, but Six Flags just merged with another company about two years back and cost cutting has been the game for months. Their maintenance budget has been slashed and if I had to guess, this was a preventable accident.
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u/Excuse 5h ago
By the other company, you mean Cedar Fairs which is not some unknown theme park company and is not some company that would cut costs of maintenance and safety. Cedar Fairs is known for spending money on new and innovative coasters and if anything they were far better managed than Six Flags was prior to the merger.
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u/MonMotha 5h ago
The merger was with Cedar Fair who famously own/operate Cedar Point among several other amusement parks. Cedar Point is essentially the roller coaster capital of the US and has a pretty good safety record and certainly a much better record in that respect than Six Flags.
If anything, I'd expect ongoing safety problems at Six Flags parts to be lingering issues left over from the way they'd previously/always operated or infestation of Cedar Fair management with the "ideals and values" of Six Flags. I certainly hope it's not the latter as I have always been happy with my experience at Cedar Fair parks in the past.
To give you a related anecdote, I was once on Millennium Force when the train apparently DID manage to leave the station with a restraint not secured. The operator noticed the problem, made an announcement right as the train left the station that we'd be stopped, and stopped it on the lift hill. Someone came out and carefully re-inspected every restraint on the hill, then the ride was restarted and allowed to complete its cycle. That train was immediately removed from service once it returned to the station, and all riders on it were given the option of an immediate re-ride.
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u/Lifes-a-lil-foggy 4h ago
I remember going to six flags after being raised at Disney and being shocked by how laissez-faire all the ride staff seemed.
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u/boxofstuff 5h ago
I've ridden this ride multiple times this year. One time when wearing loose pants, I almost lost my wallet during airtime. After I thought I was tightly locked in the seat. This case may end up being alot like what happened to Tyre Sampson in 2022 in orlando
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u/wife-shaped-husband 5h ago
Yeah, my first thought was if this was like the woman who fell from The Texas Giant in 2013. Super sad.
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u/haveblue23 4h ago
Ride operator a similar B&M roller coaster for a year I am guessing 3. My other guess would be person of size led the lock to only make it down the first rachet (which is kind of option 2). Ride will not dispatch in the first case
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u/DariDimes 5h ago
As someone who went on this coaster once as a kid, it’s very easy to not lock it down hard enough. Luckily in my case the attendant noticed and pushed my lock down further.
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u/Defacto_Champ 6h ago edited 6h ago
The riders “stuck” on the main lift hill were on a different train than where the accident happened. An emergency stop was pressed when the other train came back to the station with the passenger missing from that train
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u/barringtonmacgregor 6h ago edited 6h ago
Missing? Someone flew out? It's been a long time, but the ride if I remember uses a lap harness only. No loops, but there are some pretty jarring turns where I've seen folks blackout from the forces.
Edit: I've ridden Goliath at Six Flags Magic Mountain. I didn't realize this was another park. Not sure if the harness is the same. Either way, what the fuck?
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u/kristospherein 6h ago
Their restraint opened and they were ejected out of the coaster.
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u/Dandan0005 5h ago
Welp, that’s a new fear unlocked.
Seems like this should be literally impossible.
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u/goth_duck_returns 5h ago
Roller coasters are still safer than driving to the theme park, but you should go down the ride accident rabbit hole
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u/Victor_Korchnoi 5h ago
Everyone thought it was. This roller coaster has done hundreds of thousands of cycles. There are dozens of roller coasters with identical restraints. They’ve cumulatively done millions of rides. This is the first time this failure has been seen.
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u/excusememoi 5h ago
In addition to the park evacuation, Six Flags also closed all the B&M Hyper coasters in its parks for the rest of the day.
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u/PlanktonFun5387 6h ago
My restraint on a carnival ride) had a malfunction and I was barely able to escape as like a 10 year old. I won’t ride carnival rides to this day because of it. Not even a big fan of coasters anymore but will go on them. And I work in aviation maintenance so I get nervous putting my life in the hands of people who will likely cut corners
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u/panicnarwhal 4h ago
not nearly as bad, but my daughter got her arm stuck in the gap of the lap bar on the ravine flyer 2 at waldameer in erie, pa. she was a skinny little 10 year old sitting in the car behind me with her brother when i heard screaming that didn’t sound like fun screaming anymore - when the coaster banked, her elbow got stuck, and she couldn’t get it out, and it was hurting her bad. when the coaster stopped, the lap bar raised, and she was still stuck, so she had to try and raise with it. total nightmare. medics had to get her arm out, and she ended up with a terribly swollen arm, and a nasty bruise that lasted the rest of the summer
also, while that was happening, my husband was in kiddie land with our youngest. the guy running the ride lost track of how many kids he let in, and didn’t put our 3 year old into one of the elephants - he started the ride up despite everyone screaming that he was wandering around the ride, and my husband jumped the gate just in time to grab him before he got brained by a flying elephant
we’ve never been back to that park, since they tried to injure 50% of our kids that day
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u/RingoFreakingStarr 4h ago
The difference in safety standards of carnival rides versus amusement park rides is VAST.
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u/everynamecombined 5h ago edited 4h ago
I never go on them now. I had a thought one time about why we even seek the thrill and my answer kept being, "because you could die but usually dont." So I now cant get over how I view them. At least a car or a plane has a destination to end up at but an amusement park ride serves no other purpose than thrill. I reserve thrills for safer things now
Edit: i should add that i also never enjoyed them as much as others seemed to so its easy to part ways. Its like a person who doesnt like alcohol vowing to never drink alcohol again.
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u/cirocobama93 6h ago
Same thing happened to me on Top Gun/Afterburn at carowinds. It came undone as I was going up the first rise. Absolute panic attack. Luckily it’s a normal coaster with forward momentum the whole way so I could just hold it down but I threw up the second I got off. Can’t get on them to this day
I trust the science, I don’t trust the people
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u/xio_ID 5h ago
lol top gun breaks down like 10x/day for the past 15+ years. I’ve been on it twice when it got stuck, once was right at the top of the very first drop. In the rain.
Insane how it hasn’t led to any serious injuries/been shut down.
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u/ArthurBea 4h ago
I remember people intentionally trying to disable the restraints on many rides I went on at Six Flags. Goliath felt very safe to me. Meanwhile, kids were intentionally loose for their restraints on things like Batman and Riddler. It seemed like a dumb thrill—seeking thing to brag about. It was a long while back, though.
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u/RunTheDamnBalll 5h ago
That’s horrific. I have probably ridden this ride over 100 times and never thought I would see this headline
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u/BobLabReeSorJefGre 5h ago
This is the first time a fatal accident has ever occurred on a roller coaster made by Bolliger & Mabillard that was not caused by a pre-existing health condition or someone illegally re-entering the ride area and being struck by the train (their first coaster went into operation in 1990). Rollercoasters are very safe, and the statistics prove that. The investigation is under way. Most likely all Six Flags owned B&M coasters with clamshell restraints will add seatbelts (some already have them). This will add a layer of redundancy. I also want to state that I am not judging anyone who is afraid of rollercoasters or who just doesn’t like them.
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u/pjs32000 4h ago
To elaborate... seatbelts would add an ADDITIONAL layer of redundancy, as even without one there would already be redundancy on the restraint design. You're likely aware of this, but many reading your comment may not be.
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u/gplusplus314 4h ago
Going off memory, I believe the B&M clamshell restraints have 3 locks in the mechanism. All 3 would have to fail before the seatbelts are in play.
Definitely multiple locks, but the number could be 2 or 4, I don’t exactly remember.
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u/5kyl3r 4h ago
a bit mind-blowing they don't just include lap belts as a safety net that we all hope we'll never need. the initial cost vs PR damage seems like an easy decision
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u/BobLabReeSorJefGre 4h ago
Apollo’s Chariot was the first B&M Hypercoaster. It opened in 1999. This is the first time this has happened across B&M’s Hypercoaster model range. Although a bird did die on Apollo’s Chariot’s opening day when it struck Fabio in the face.
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u/DirtAndSurf 5h ago
I'm sure it's been said here many times and in many different ways but, man, my heart sure goes out to the deceased man, his loved ones, the injured people, all the people who had to witness this tragic atrocity, and everybody who was and is going to be affected by the horrible event.💔🙏🏼☮️🤍
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u/breaddoughrising 5h ago
Jesus!
Witnesses who were on the ride were emotional as they described a gruesome scene, saying the man hit the ride several times after he was ejected. One witness told Cody Alcorn that the falling man was captured on their souvenir picture taken while on the ride.
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u/Louisville82 4h ago
The last moments of you alive are caught on camera, with your kid there as a witness. Just icing on the cake of the worst possible situation and tragedy. I hope that kid never has another bad day in his life.
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u/1minimalist 2h ago
His kid was with him?! I didn’t hear that. That’s horrible. Oh my god.
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u/SurprisedBottle 5h ago
Idk how I feel about a lot of rides and just everything made in general. That whole documentary about Disney and how they treated their Maint crew and PMs in order to save money kinda got me thinking, like damn. With Boeing, Taylor Farms, Volkswagen, etc having their scandals it’s just so “odd” for lack of a better term.
Like yeah it’s a low risk but you’re telling me the risk can go even lower? And y’all willingly choose not to? I get that it’s business but idk it’s just kinda odd that there isn’t no universal agreement of some sort.
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u/StrangeKnee7254 5h ago
Same park different ride. I got on the Georgia scorcher which is a standup rollercoaster. The lap bar did not click for me and they were about to start the ride.
I started yelling and the other passengers started yelling as well to not start the ride. I got in a different seat and made damn sure that the lap bar clicked.
If I hesitated or no one paid attention to me who knows what would’ve happened.
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u/Lionoras 4h ago
Honestly, I'm surprised it would get that far - nvm that they even let anyone drive after that! Like. I'm no expert. But at the carnivals/parks I'm from, the guys always rush through to check if everyone is truly clicked-in.
Plus, just the fear that there might have been more damage to the cart. I.e., another one de-clicking during the ride-
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u/CookieOmNomster 6h ago
Coincidentally, the last time I was at Six Flags Over GA was the week after the person got decapitated by the Batman coaster.
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u/Farrishnakov 5h ago
That one was because the person was stupid though. They hopped the fence to get into the restricted area.
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u/CookieOmNomster 5h ago
Very true. I do feel horrible for the person he collided with.
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u/No_Science1192 5h ago
It happened as the ride photos were taken. I just saw it, rip 😔
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u/oogiesmuncher 3h ago
the fuck does "hit the ride several times" even mean? Like he fell and tumbled onto several racks below him? Or are they just trying to skirt around the fact that the ride actually hit/ran over him??
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u/yourfavteamsucks 2h ago
He was in one of the front cars and bounced and hit the cars behind his at least 3x, causing injuries to 4 other people
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u/waifive 3h ago edited 3h ago
Imagine someone riding a bull. They lose their grip and are bucked upward into the air, but land on the bull again. That's basically what happened, three times. The end of the ride has three small hills, then a sharp left turn.
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u/kevincaz07 1h ago
Yes, I was confused and naively went on X. At the end of third small hill before the turn, it takes your picture. The picture shows his empty seat with restraint open, him in the row of seats behind him, upside down and facing backwards, pants falling down, and the looks of horror from everyone sitting near him. That was moments before the turn likely pushed him to the side and out down onto the building below.
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u/ludololl 6h ago
I hit an age eventually, around when the hangovers started mattering, when I went "I'd have to be plastered to want to do that."
Bottom line is I got my drinking under control and discovered a fear of death at the same time.
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u/AggressiveSkywriting 6h ago
Doesn't help that your inner ear changes as you age. My tolerance for movement at forty is not what it was at twenty.
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u/Top_Mathematician233 6h ago
I developed motion sickness within the last few years and did not know this was why until just now. (I’m 42.) Thank you, genuinely. I got sick on one of those electric scooters and on a pontoon boat trip, and I spent every weekend on fishing and sail boats when I was young.
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u/RPM_Rocket 4h ago
Ex -SFMM ride-op here. Have to ask, were they a passenger of size. 'Cause that's what happened at our park back in the 80s.
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u/kindergentler 6h ago
I am 5’4", and I stopped riding rollercoasters because I kept getting hurt (from slipping I guess?) or feeling like I was only "in place" because of my white-knuckled, sore-afterward-because-it-literally-felt-like-"dear life" hold on the "safety" bar. I just don't think they are as safe as we like to pretend.
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u/codemeister666 5h ago
I'm 6'3 and have the entire opposite issue. It feels as if I'm having to hold the restraints down at all times to keep myself contained.
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u/its_over9000 5h ago
i mean. factor in how many thousands of people ride these coasters, over the course of however many years, and the rate of injury is extremely safe.
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u/Everestkid 3h ago
It's the same deal as plane crashes.
Look at all the planes in the sky right now. Every single one of them took off safely, and odds are extremely good that every single one will land safely. These sorts of accidents - plane crashes, roller coaster deaths - make the news because they are extremely rare.
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u/FatalFirecrotch 4h ago
It’s more than that. This ride system has legitimately seen probably 1-2 billion riders across the industry and this is the first accident potentially involving that system.
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u/entenduintransit 4h ago
yeah it's a cliche but also just plainly true that you're substantially more likely to die on your way to the grocery store than you are on one of these coasters
I think a lot of people will say "at least I'm in control of the car" and while it is true that the idea of something being completely out of your hands is a factor, I'd say that statement just about certainly still true if you're doing everything perfect on the road
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u/lFightForTheUsers 3h ago
You can be in complete control of the car while a drunkard plows their pickup truck into you at 100mph. Roller coasters are absolutely like aircraft in the same way of risk of fatality per trip / ride, compared to the much higher risk of dying in an automobile.
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u/123-Moondance 6h ago
Didn't someone else die on a coaster in the last couple of months? Seems like on that one they closed down the coaster.
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u/gregplaysdrums 6h ago
X2 at Six Flags Magic Mountain. Not from falling out/ejected though.
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u/SativaLungz 5h ago
No one died. It was from 100s of people reporting brain injuries.
Although, someone died at this same park in Georgia a few years back for jumping the fence to batman to grab his hat and getting Decapitated by someone's foot on the coaster
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u/Development-Feisty 5h ago
A kid had his neck snapped when there was a fault and the ride stopped suddenly so yes there have been deaths
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u/Existing-Stranger632 5h ago
The brain injury stuff was at Magic Mountain in Santa Clarita, California. Much different situation there.
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u/angiosperms- 4h ago
Six flags has closed all coasters with similar restraints across all of their parks in response.
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u/capnofasinknship 5h ago
This article is horribly written. I get that they don’t have a lot of information at this time, but the writing is just lousy. A man fell and hit the ride several times? What?
Witnesses said a man fell and hit the ride several times.
The accident left riders stuck on an incline and prompted an evacuation of the park on Monday.
Workers were in the process of removing riders from the cars and onto a stairway.
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u/MattCW1701 5h ago
From what I've gathered elsewhere, in one train, the man fell out, got hit by the same train, then landed on a building below. When that train got to the station, the workers hit the emergency stop which shut down the lift hill which stranded the second train that people had to be evacuated from.
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u/ShitTheFuckDown 5h ago
Exactly I am so confused
I gather that the man flew out and hit the people sitting behind him in the same car.
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u/Comfortable_Year1549 1h ago
This man was riding with his son. The son had to witness his father get killed in such grotesque, unnatural way. He fell back and hit the cart three times, getting blood on the passengers behind him, and then fell on a haunted house attraction. His wife and daughter were waiting for them at the end of the ride. They probably couldn’t even comprehend what the hell was happening. It’s beyond tragic. It’s a bizarre, horrific nightmare. I truly hope the family and everyone who witnessed something so disturbing can find peace.
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u/AdorableCattle7105 6h ago
guy flew out of his seat, hit the ride 3 times and a building, and in the photos they give you after the ride, he's in it flying off the ride.