Death on Six Flags rollercoaster in US triggers ride closures across six states

Theme park company Six Flags temporarily closed nine rollercoasters across six amusement parks on Monday after one person died and several others were injured in an incident involving a coaster in Georgia.

A spokesperson for the park said they closed similar attractions across their parks “out of an abundance of caution” after the incident at Six Flags Over Georgia, about 15 miles (24km) north-west of Atlanta.

Officials did not confirm how the person died, nor how the others were injured or their conditions.

Cobb County police department’s major crimes unit has launched an investigation.

Witnesses who spoke to NBC affiliate WXIA of Atlanta said they saw a man fall from the Goliath rollercoaster. “He fell and hit the car three different times,” one witness told the station.

A Six Flags spokesperson said the park and local authorities responded immediately and that they are fully cooperating with local authorities as they investigate.

“We are deeply saddened by the guest incident at our park today,” the spokesperson said, adding that they are providing support to the guests and team members impacted.

Authorities and Six Flags did not identify the rollercoaster. However, local TV stations showed video of passengers being evacuated from the Goliath coaster.

The rollercoaster, which was opened in 2006, reaches top speeds of 70mph (about 113 kph) and heights of 200 feet (61 meters), the park’s website reports. During about 3 1/2 minutes, riders “navigate through razor-sharp turns and soar over colossal hills”, according to the website.

“I cannot imagine the horror the patrons and employees witnessed today, and my heart aches for the family who lost a loved one,” Lisa Cupid, the Cobb County board of commissioners chair, said in a statement. She added that next of kin have been notified.

The amusement park is a major part of the county’s tourism and brings in visitors from across the south-east, Cupid said.

“We are all grappling with how something so devastating could happen at a place that has given generations of families such happy memories,” she said.

The incident comes less than two weeks after Six Flags Magic Mountain, in Southern California, announced that it is retiring its famous X2 rollercoaster amid lawsuits alleging serious brain injury caused by the ride.

The park had settled one wrongful-death lawsuit from the family of a 22-year-old man who died after riding the coaster in 2022.

Last year, a 32-year-old man died after riding a high-speed rollercoaster at the Universal Epic Universe theme park in Florida. He died from blunt impact injuries and his death was ruled accidental.