A 42-year-old man was ejected from the Goliath roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia on Monday, striking other patrons before landing below the ride, and Georgia officials are reviewing what happened.
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A 42-year-old man, Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, died after being thrown from his seat while riding the Goliath roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia in Georgia on Monday, according to the incident described by officials and industry sources. The rider struck other patrons during the fall and then landed below the ride.
Goliath features a 200-foot (61-metre) sheer drop and reaches top speeds of 70 mph (112 kph), with its design focused on steep velocity and downhill plunges rather than inverting riders through loops or corkscrews. The ride has operated at the park for two decades.
In response to the death, Six Flags temporarily closed nine similar roller coasters across North America “out of an abundance of caution,” the company said in connection with the incident.
Georgia’s Office of Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner is conducting an “in-depth and comprehensive review” of what happened Monday, according to spokesperson Garrison Bennett. Ride manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard said it is “actively investigating the incident and will not comment further until we have a better understanding of what happened.”
Under the U.S. system described in the report, roller coasters and other attractions at major amusement parks are not regulated by the federal government; state governments handle the responsibility, creating what some experts say is an inconsistent patchwork of oversight.
U.S. Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts has repeatedly introduced legislation aimed at closing what he calls a “loophole” that allows U.S. safety officials to regulate mobile rides while limiting the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s ability to oversee stationary rides at major amusement parks. University of Florida professor Brian Avery, described as an amusement ride safety expert, questioned how rides are monitored and said: “Who’s watching those in these organizations to ensure that they are adequately trained, that they are compliant, that they are monitoring these rides to the level in which the standards have established?”
Industry groups and consultants highlighted that amusement park operators generally follow ASTM standards for ride design and construction, including limits on acceleration and the forces riders can experience. Dennis Speigel, a theme park consultant and past president of the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, said amusement parks use multiple layers of inspection and face pressure from insurance carriers. He said in a phone interview Tuesday that theme parks are “really one of the safest places to be on the planet.”
Speigel also noted that the trade group’s estimate places the chance of being seriously injured on a U.S. amusement park ride at 1 in 15.5 million rides taken. Roller coaster expert Martin Lewinson said it is difficult to imagine a mechanical malfunction on a ride like Goliath because of its design, describing a pull-down lap restraint, known as a “clamshell,” using a ratchet mechanism with redundancy. Lewinson added that a safety system shows a green “go” light for every seat before dispatch, meaning the train should not be allowed to proceed unless restraints are locked, though “few things are 100% safe.”
The report also cited earlier U.S. fatalities involving amusement rides, including a 2022 incident in Missouri where a 14-year-old fell to his death after a harness did not lock properly due to his size, and a 2013 death on the Texas Giant at Six Flags Over Texas involving a 52-year-old woman who slipped out of her seat.
Following earlier incidents, Six Flags has added redesigned restraint-bar pads, seat belts and a coaster seat at the ride’s entrance so guests can check whether they fit safely into the cars. Nick Mendenhall, who said he has ridden Goliath more than a dozen times in recent weeks, said he observed staff checking restraints each time, adding that “there are two employees, one on either side of the train,” who push down and make sure it locks.
The report also outlined how state oversight can differ: in California, the Department of Industrial Relations approves new rides and modified rides, with officials either directly inspecting annually or relying on an annual inspection by the owner; Florida’s largest theme parks are exempt from state safety inspections, instead running their own inspection protocols while reporting injuries or deaths; Texas relies on inspections by private inspectors hired by park operators or insurance companies; and Arizona does not have a state-level agency regulating amusement park rides, requiring an annual private inspection with enforcement largely by local government.
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