Six Flags Magic Mountain’s famous Goliath roller coaster in Los Angeles County has been temporarily taken out of service following a fatal accident Monday at the same-named attraction at a Six Flags park in Georgia.
The Cobb County Police Department said one person was killed and several others were hurt in the incident at the Atlanta-area park.
Authorities identified the victim as 42-year-old Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem. Investigators were told that Kariem was ejected from the coaster, struck other visitors and then fell beneath the ride.
Officials have not yet determined the full circumstances that led to his death, and the investigation remains ongoing.
One witness told WXIA-TV, Atlanta’s NBC affiliate, that a man fell from the Goliath coaster and hit a young girl sitting two rows ahead near the point where riders’ photographs are taken.
A Six Flags representative said the company was “deeply saddened” by the deadly event.
“Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with the guest’s family, friends, and loved ones. We are also providing support to the guests and team members affected,” the spokesperson told CBS.
The representative added that park employees and local officials acted immediately and that Six Flags was fully cooperating with authorities during the investigation.
A spokesperson for Magic Mountain told CBS that there is currently no estimate for when the Goliath coaster in Valencia, Southern California, will reopen.
According to Six Flags, the Magic Mountain version of Goliath rises 235 feet and sends riders down a 255-foot drop before plunging into an underground tunnel.
The high-speed attraction can reach 85 mph and includes a series of sharp turns, drops and spiraling sections.
As a precaution, Six Flags has also suspended operations on nine comparable rides at six other parks.
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“Out of an abundance of caution, we have temporarily closed similar attractions across our parks,” the spokesperson said. “The safety of our guests and team members remains one of our highest priorities.”
The Goliath shutdown follows the permanent retirement of Magic Mountain’s X2 coaster in late September, after more than 100 riders reportedly claimed the attraction had caused catastrophic brain injuries.
Among those cases was that of a 25-year-old woman who remained on a ventilator in September, two months after she allegedly suffered a severe brain injury.
Photos showed Naomi Greer-Wilkinson surrounded by medical equipment, with a breathing tube connected to a tracheostomy in her neck. In another image, she was wearing a cervical collar.
Her parents, Artemis Greer and Joshua Wilkinson, said their daughter had been working toward recovery since collapsing after riding X2 at the Southern California theme park in July, according to the Daily Mail.
The family alleged that the coaster caused a major traumatic brain injury, leaving Greer-Wilkinson in a coma and requiring emergency surgery on her brain.
Doctors who treated Greer-Wilkinson and another injured rider told CNN that their conditions were linked to a “traumatic rapid acceleration-deceleration event” while riding X2.
Greer-Wilkinson became ill six days after Pamela Guillen experienced a similar medical emergency on the coaster while celebrating her daughter Camille Marquez’s 16th birthday.
Guillen said she became confused and disoriented after getting off X2 and later woke up in a hospital, where she learned she had undergone emergency surgery for a brain bleed.
“I remember seeing the fear in my daughter’s eyes and how scared she was,” Guillen said.
Lawsuits filed by riders raised concerns about the coaster’s design, alleging that Six Flags and ride manufacturer S&S Worldwide relied on outdated testing and maintenance practices.
