Six Flags will install safety belts on a roller coaster in Georgia where a passenger fell to his death earlier this month, the company’s CEO said. The company’s rides with similar restraints will also receive safety upgrades.
Less than two weeks after Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, 42, of Atlanta died after being ejected from his seat on the Goliath roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia, the theme park operator announced additional safeguards.
READ MORE: More roller coasters shut down as authorities investigate fatal fall at Georgia amusement park
“We are increasing safety precautions at our parks and taking additional steps, including adding safety belts on Goliath and other similarly restrained roller coasters,” Six Flags Entertainment President and CEO John Reilly said in a statement Friday.
Goliath remains closed while state and local officials investigate the Oct. 12 death.
Reilly did not specify which other Six Flags roller coasters will be equipped with seat belts. But it has temporarily closed eight other roller coasters at five other parks in the United States and Canada. These rides all have the same manufacturer and similar restraint systems.
Six Flags has not yet said when the coasters are expected to reopen. Six Flags has hired independent engineers and inspectors to review safety procedures for all rides at its theme parks, Reilly’s statement said.
Investigators have not yet said what went wrong on the Georgia roller coaster. Witnesses said they saw Karim stand up from his seat, fall headfirst back into the cart and then be ejected. Some people who rode Goliath before him that day said they were concerned about its limitations.
All nine Six Flags roller coasters that rolled off the assembly line were manufactured by Swiss company Bolliger & Mabillard. They also feature similar clamshell restraints that sit on top of a vertical bar between each rider’s knees. The bars lock the padded restraints over the rider’s knees and thighs.
Bolliger & Mabillard’s 2001 U.S. restraint system patent says the system is designed to give each rider the feeling “that he is sitting on a flying carpet, or that he is controlling a flying scooter, while still ensuring optimal safety.”
After the deaths in Georgia, non-Six Flags theme parks such as SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida, and La Ronde in Montreal, Canada, also temporarily closed one of their roller coasters that use clamshell restraints.
SeaWorld reopened its Mako roller coaster on Tuesday after being closed for a week. The Associated Press asked the company via email Saturday whether it plans to install seat belts or other safety upgrades on the coaster.
The Associated Press also emailed a La Ronde spokesperson seeking an update on the closure of its roller coasters.
In addition to Goliath in Georgia, eight roller coasters at Six Flags in Gurnee, Illinois, remain closed. Jackson Township, New Jersey; Charlotte, North Carolina; Mason, Ohio; and Vaughan, Ontario.
Bynum reported from Savannah, Georgia.
A free press is the cornerstone of a healthy democracy.
Support trustworthy journalism and civil dialogue.