Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, 42, died after falling from the 200-foot-tall Goliath “gigacoaster” at Six Flags in Georgia, US, on Saturday. His son was seated on the ride, while his wife and daughter witnessed the incident from the ground.
Witnesses describe the fall
Riders recalled that Hassan made eye contact with them and struck three different coaster cars as he plummeted. The Goliath attraction, the tallest in Georgia, opened in 2006 and reaches top speeds of 70 mph.
According to witnesses, Hassan was mid-ride with his son when he slipped out of his lap restraint and landed on the roof of a haunted house below. The fall was captured on official souvenir photos, and disturbing images circulated on social media, appearing to show Hassan flailing upside down as other passengers screamed.
Rider accounts and injuries
“He didn't fall directly onto us. He fell onto a girl two rows in front of us. He fell and hit the cart three different times,” one woman on the ride told 11Alive. “He was in our pictures. His son was right beside him … his son watched it all.” The woman said park employees refused to let riders off immediately.
Riders were stranded at an incline as evacuation began at around 5pm local time. They were evacuated in groups of four, while others remained stuck in the middle. Four other riders were injured, and many on the ride were covered in Hassan's blood.
Ride remains closed amid investigation
Parkgoer Logan Conner, riding with his fiancé, said the man “started levitating in the air sideways” as he tumbled. Fellow rider Fred Sowemimo told NBC that Hassan's safety harness appeared to become “dislodged” and “he flew out.”
The incident remains under investigation and the ride remains closed. Six Flags has shut down its nine large “gigacoasters” like the Goliath across North America “out of an abundance of caution.”
