Incidents at Six Flags parks

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This is a summary of notable incidents that have taken place at various Six Flags-owned theme parks. This list is not intended to be a comprehensive list of every such event, but only those that have a significant impact on the parks or park operations, or are otherwise significantly newsworthy.

The term incidents refers to major accidents, injuries, or deaths that occur at a Six Flags park. While these incidents were required to be reported to regulatory authorities due to where they occurred, they usually fall into one of the following categories:

  1. Caused by negligence on the part of the guest. This can be refusal to follow specific ride safety instructions, or deliberate intent to break park rules.
  2. The result of a guest's known or unknown health issues.
  3. Negligence on the part of the park, either by ride operator or maintenance.
  4. Act of God or a generic accident (eg slipping and falling), that is not a direct result of an action on anybody's part.

Please see the references for each listed item for specific details.


[edit] Six Flags Darien Lake

  • In 1999, 400 lb (180 kg) guest Michael Dwaileebe was unable to close his lap bar properly and was thrown from the Superman coaster, sustaining serious injuries.[1].

[edit] Six Flags Elitch Gardens

[edit] The Rainbow

  • In May 2002, John Garlick, 28, opened his seat restraints and stood while the ride was in motion, subsequently falling to his death. Park officials later stated that Garlick was visiting the park with a group of "mentally-challenged individuals."[2]

[edit] Sidewinder

  • In August 1997, a ride operator fatally fell from the three-story roller coaster platform. OSHA fined the park over $32,000 as a result.[2]

[edit] Six Flags Great America

  • In 1998, 23 riders on the Demon roller coaster were stranded upside-down in the middle of a vertical loop. Firefighters used a cherry picker to bring riders to safety, although some were on the ride for as long as three hours. The incident was the result of a mechanical failure.[3]

[edit] Six Flags Great Adventure

[edit] Rolling Thunder

Main article: Rolling Thunder (roller coaster)
  • On August 16, 1981, 20-year-old park employee Scott Tyler of Middletown fell from the Rolling Thunder roller coaster during a routine test run. An investigation by the New Jersey Labor Department concluded that the man may not have secured himself with the safety bar. A park representative later confirmed this conclusion, saying that the employee "may have assumed an unauthorized riding position that did not make use of safety restraints." The ride was inspected, and the Labor Department concluded that the ride was "operationally and mechanically sound." Rolling Thunder was reopened a day later and still operates at Great Adventure. [4]

[edit] Haunted Castle

  • On May 11, 1984, eight teenagers burned to death in the Haunted Castle at Six Flags Great Adventure attraction in Jackson Township, New Jersey. The attraction was made of 17 connected trailers, and had been installed six years earlier to be a temporary attraction. Because the Haunted Castle was not considered to be a permanent structure, it was never inspected by the Jackson Township fire inspector and was not required to have the same level of fire safety equipment as other park structures. While many details about the incident are unknown, testimony during the subsequent trials stated that in a long corridor that was dark because of a malfunctioning strobe light, a 14-year-old boy lit a cigarette lighter in order to see, eventually bumping into and igniting some foam rubber wall padding. The resulting fire spread quickly through the maze-like structure due to the use of various flammable building materials. The entire attraction was destroyed. Fourteen people, including four park employees, escaped. Seven people were treated for smoke inhalation at an area hospital. Firefighters from 11 towns were called to the scene. [5][6]

Great Adventure and its parent company Six Flags Corporation were charged with aggravated manslaughter. The prosecution contended they were reckless in not taking adequate precautions against fire; and that the disaster occurred due to the combustibility of the building, lack of sufficient emergency exits, and the lack of fire alarms and sprinkler systems.[7] The defense cited a 1983 report by fire inspectors, which concluded that the attraction was safe for operation. Expert witnesses on the defense team stated that the fire might have been started intentionally. The park's owners faced maximum combined fines of $1.2 million. It was reported that they spent $6 million for their defense. The companies were acquitted on all criminal charges by a New Jersey Superior Court jury on July 20, 1985, in Toms River, New Jersey. [8][9]

The families of those who were killed later sued Great Adventure and Six Flags, charging them with manslaughter and aggravated manslaughter.[10] One suit was reported to have been settled by the payment of $2.5 million to the victim's family.[11]

[edit] Lightnin' Loops

  • On June 17, 1987, 19-year-old Karen Brown died after falling from the Lightnin' Loops shuttle loop roller coaster.[12] An investigation by the State Labor Department concluded that the ride itself was operating properly, but that the ride operator started the ride without checking that all of the passengers were secured by the safety harnesses. The Department's Office of Safety Compliance further concluded that the accident would not have occurred had proper procedures been followed. The park was found to be in violation of the Carnival/Amusement Ride Safety Act and was subsequently charged with the maximum state fines of $1,000. The ride was reopened a few months later with the permission of the Labor Department. The ride was eventually removed from Great Adventure.[13][14]


[edit] Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom

  • During its inaugural season in 1990, the "Vampire" roller coaster stopped mid-run and 24 passengers had to climb down from a 12-story structure.[15] In two incidents in the spring of 1999, the roller coaster stranded riders; on 7 April and 28 May, the train stopped in similar locations and riders were brought to safety by firefighters in cherry pickers [2] [3]. Following that season the ride was moved to Six Flags New England.

[edit] Six Flags Magic Mountain

  • In 1978, 20-year-old Carolina Flores was ejected from the Colossus ride, which was in its inaugural season.[16]
  • In 1996, part-time employee Cherie LaMotte was killed while crossing the tracks of the Revolution roller coaster. She was struck by a train full of park visitors as it returned to the station; both passengers and those waiting in line for the ride saw LaMotte fly into an area beneath the coaster, and she was pronounced dead at the scene from massive injuries.[17]
  • On June 2, 2001, 28-year-old Pearl Santos died of a brain aneurysm while riding Goliath. Her family sued the park, claiming that managers were aware of other complaints from Goliath riders and continued to operate the coaster anyway.[18]
  • On April 9, 2004, 21-year-old Bantita Rackchamroon died after being struck by the roller coaster Scream! while on the tracks during a test run prior to the park's opening that day. The roller coaster was allowed to be re-opened the next day after an OSHA inspection.[19]

[edit] Six Flags Marine World

  • On August 24, 1999, 28 passengers were stranded on the Boomerang ride for several hours. The lifting device that pulled the train up an incline failed to release the train, and riders were rescued by firefighters in cherry pickers.[20]

[edit] Six Flags New England

[edit] Superman: Ride of Steel

Main article: Superman: Ride of Steel
  • On May 1, 2004, 55-year-old Stanley Mordarsky of Bloomfield, Connecticut fell out of his coaster seat during a ride on the Superman coaster. Reports show that the ride attendant had not checked that Mr. Mordarsky's ride restraint was properly secured.[21] Mr. Mordarsky's girth was too large for the T-bar-shaped ride restraint to close, and he should have been denied boarding. Although his family said that due to his various medical conditions, such as cerebral palsy, that he shouldn't have been allowed to ride, the park stated that the Federal Americans With Disabilities Act forbids them from denying a ride to a disabled person as long as they can get on the ride themselves.[22]

[edit] Six Flags Over Georgia

[edit] Batman: The Ride

  • In May 2002, 58-year-old Samuel Milton Guyton, a Six Flags employee, was struck in the head by the legs of a passenger after entering a restricted area during the ride's operation. He died in the hospital as a result of the injury.[2]

[edit] Goliath

Main article: Goliath (Six Flags Over Georgia)
  • In July 2006, 45-year-old Michael Corry of Birmingham, Alabama died of a heart attack while riding Goliath. He was alert during the ride, but was unconscious when the train arrived at the loading platform. Autopsy showed that the man had a congenital heart condition, and it was expected that the medical examiner would announce that he died of natural causes.[23] Goliath was closed for two hours for an inspection, but was found to be operating normally.

[edit] Z-Force

  • In the summer of 1989, a very young boy from Alabama was found unconsious as the train he was riding re-entered the station. He was pronounced dead that same evening. It was later discovered that he may have had a pre-existing heart condition which was unknown by the family at the time.

[edit] Great Six Flags Air Racer

  • In June 1984, 34 passengers were injured after a computer malfunction caused the ride's cables to drop the planes out of position. [24]

[edit] Unnamed roller coaster

  • In May 1984, a mechanical problem caused a roller coaster to stop abruptly, sending four people to a hospital. The ride was repaired and put back into service with no more problems. [25]

[edit] Six Flags St. Louis

  • In July 1984, 46-year-old Stella Holcomb was riding the Rail Blazer roller coaster when she was flung from the ride and fell 20 feet to her death. Park officials claimed that the woman fainted and fell out of the car, but her husband, who had been beside her, said that she had not fainted but had simply been tossed from the ride when it whipped around a curve. At the time, the ride was only the third stand-up roller coaster in the country, but following this incident it was converted to a sit-down coaster.[26]

An earlier incident in 1978 resulted in the deaths of two children and an adult when a gondola of the The Sky-Way plunged to the ground.

[edit] Six Flags Over Texas

[edit] Roaring Rapids

  • On March 21, 1999, 28-year-old Valeria Cartwright drowned, and 10 other guests were injured, when the raft they were on overturned in 2-3 feet of water due to sudden deflation of the air chambers that support the raft. The raft then got caught on an underwater pipe, which provided leverage for the rushing water in the ride to flip the boat over.[27] In a subsequent settlement, Six Flags agreed to pay US$4 million to the Cartwright family, and the company would join the Cartwrights in a lawsuit against Canyon Manufacturing Co., the company responsible for parts that were related to the accident.[28]

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Six Flags Takes Precautions On Dangerous Ride", WHAM-13, 2004-05-05. Retrieved on 2006-12-02.
  2. ^ a b c "Man died after standing up on ride, authorities say", Daily Camera, 2002-05-29. Retrieved on 2006-09-29.
  3. ^ "Accident Blamed on Axle Flaw", Chicago Tribune, 1998-04-21. Retrieved on 2006-09-26.
  4. ^ "Ride in Jersey Park Opens After Death", New York Times, 1981-08-18. Retrieved on 2006-07-28.
  5. ^ Ride Accidents website
  6. ^ Joe Costal. "Fire at the Haunted Castle (excerpted from Amusement Park Crisis Management)", Haunted Attraction Magazine. Retrieved on 2006-07-29.
  7. ^ "State Fire Marshall's Advisory", Massachusetts Department of Fire Services, 1999-06-03. Retrieved on 2006-07-29.
  8. ^ "Jury Acquits Great Adventure", Philadelphia Inquirer, 1985-07-21.
  9. ^ William G. Childs. "Criminal Prosecutions in the Amusement Industry – Is There a Trend?", MassTort.org - Torts, IP, Amusement Park Safety, other stuff, 2005-10-20. Retrieved on 2006-07-29.
  10. ^ "Third Suit Filed in Fatal Fire", New York Times, 1984-07-07. Retrieved on 2006-07-29.
  11. ^ "Settlement in Fire At Park in Jersey", New York Times, 1085-12-21. Retrieved on 2006-11-10.
  12. ^ "Rider on Roller Coaster Dies In a Fall at Great Adventure", New York Times, 1987-06-18. Retrieved on 2006-07-29.
  13. ^ [1]
  14. ^ List of additional articles regarding Lightnin' Loops incident
  15. ^ "Kentucky", USA Today, 1990-07-24. Retrieved on 2006-09-26.
  16. ^ "Roller Coaster Worker Dies at Magic Mountain", Los Angeles Times, 1996-05-31. Retrieved on 2006-09-26.
  17. ^ "Roller Coaster Worker Dies at Magic Mountain", Los Angeles Times, 1996-05-31. Retrieved on 2006-09-26.
  18. ^ "Family Sues Amusement Park Owner Over Death", Los Angeles Times, 2002-05-23. Retrieved on 2006-09-26.
  19. ^ "Magic Mountain Allowed To Reopen Roller Coaster", Ultimaterollercoaster.com, 2004-04-10. Retrieved on 2006-10-26.
  20. ^ "Bad Cable Blamed in Marine World Ride Failure", San Francisco Chronicle, 1999-09-04. Retrieved on 2006-09-26.
  21. ^ "New England: Massachusetts: Coaster Death Report", New York Times, 2004-05-08. Retrieved on 2006-07-31.
  22. ^ "Investigators Preparing Report in Roller Coaster Death", NBC30.com, 2004-05-04. Retrieved on 2006-07-31.
  23. ^ "Man dies after riding roller coaster at Six Flags", Macon Telegraph, 2006-07-28. Retrieved on 2006-07-28.
  24. ^ "4 Injured on Six Flags Ride", New York Times, 1984-06-05. Retrieved on 2006-07-28.
  25. ^ "4 Injured on Six Flags Ride", New York Times, 1984-06-05. Retrieved on 2006-07-28.
  26. ^ "Woman Flung to Death From Roller Coaster", New York Times, 1984-07-09. Retrieved on 2006-09-26.
  27. ^ "'Unimaginable' events led to accident, officials say", Corpus Christi Online, 1999-04-21. Retrieved on 2006-07-31.
  28. ^ "Six Flags to pay millions to victim's kin", AP, 2002-02-23. Retrieved on 2006-07-31.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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