The man who died after falling from a rollercoaster during a family day out has been named and pictured for the first time. Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, 42, died after falling from the 200-foot Goliath rollercoaster at Six Flags in Georgia on Saturday, as his son sat on the attraction and his wife and daughter watched from the ground.
Witnesses describe the fall
Horrified witnesses recounted how Hassan made eye contact with them and hit three different coaster cars as he plunged to his death from the "hypercoaster." The Goliath attraction, the tallest in the state of Georgia, opened in 2006 and reaches top speeds of 70 mph during the ride. Hassan was mid-ride with his son when he somehow slipped out of his lap restraint before landing on the roof of a haunted house below, witnesses recounted.
The violent fall was captured on official souvenir photos available to other riders, while disturbing photographs shared on social media appear to show Kariem flailing upside down as other passengers screamed in terror. Four other riders were injured in the incident, while many on the ride were covered in Hassan's blood.
Riders speak out
"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 who was on the ride told 11Alive. "He was in our pictures," she said. "His son was right beside him … his son watched it all." The woman said that park employees refused to let everyone off immediately.
Parkgoer Logan Conner, who was riding Goliath with his fiancé, said the man "started levitating in the air sideways" as he tumbled through the air. Fellow rider Fred Sowemimo told NBC that Hassan's safety harness appeared to become "dislodged" while on the ride and "he flew out." Fred's wife, Vanessa, said they initially thought it was a prank.
Ride closed pending investigation
The incident remains under investigation and the ride remains closed. Six Flags, the biggest amusement park company in the US, shut down its nine large "gigacoasters" like the Goliath across North America "out of an abundance of caution."
