The chief executive of Six Flags says the company will install seat belts on the Georgia roller coaster, Goliath. This is the same thrill ride that an Atlanta father and teacher fell from earlier this month. The company’s rides with similar restraints will also get the safety upgrade.
RELATED: Identity Of Man Killed On Six Flags Roller Coaster Revealed As Witnesses Share More Details About Incident
Six Flags Will Add New Safeguards After Man’s Death At Georgia Location
The theme park operator announced the extra safeguard less than two weeks after Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem died. The 42-year-old was ejected from his seat on the Goliath coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia.
“We are reinforcing safety precautions at our parks and taking additional measures, including adding seat belts on Goliath and other coasters with a similar restraint,” John Reilly, president and CEO of Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, said in a statement Friday (Oct. 23).
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Goliath remains shut down while state and local officials investigate the Oct. 12 death. Reilly didn’t specify which other Six Flags coasters will get seat belts. But it has temporarily closed eight additional roller coasters at five other parks in the U.S. and Canada. Those rides all share the same manufacturer and a similar restraint system.
Six Flags hasn’t said when those coasters are expected to reopen. Reilly’s statement said Six Flags has enlisted independent engineers and inspectors to review safety procedures for all rides at its theme parks.
Investigation Into Atlanta Man’s Death Is Ongoing
Investigators haven’t said what went wrong on the Georgia coaster, Goliath. Witnesses said they saw Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem rise up out of his seat and fall headfirst back into the cart before being ejected. Some people who rode Goliath before him that day said they had concerns about its restraints.
What Kind Of Restraint Did The Goliath Have?
All nine of the Six Flags coasters taken offline were manufactured by the Swiss company Bolliger & Mabillard. They also feature similar clamshell restraints that sit atop a vertical bar between each rider’s knees. The bar locks a padded restraint into place over the rider’s lap and upper legs.
The U.S. patent granted to Bolliger & Mabillard for the restraint system says it’s designed to make each rider feel “that he is seated on a flying carpet or that he is at the controls of a kind of flying scooter, while still guaranteeing optimum security.” It was granted in 2001.
Following the death in Georgia, non-Six Flags theme parks SeaWorld Orlando in Florida and La Ronde in Montreal, Canada, also temporarily closed one roller coaster apiece that uses clamshell restraints. SeaWorld reopened its Mako coaster Tuesday after it had been offline for a week. The Associated Press emailed the company on Saturday, asking whether seat belts or other safety upgrades were planned for the coaster.
In addition to Goliath in Georgia, eight coasters remain closed at Six Flags parks in Gurnee, Illinois; Jackson Township, New Jersey; Charlotte, North Carolina; Mason, Ohio; and Vaughan, Ontario.
RELATED: Six Flags Over Georgia Reopens Four Days After Atlanta Man Fell To His Death From Goliath Roller Coaster
Associated Press writer Russ Bynum contributed to this report via AP Newsroom.
