Rides at Six Flags parks across the country, including the Raging Bull in Gurnee, are getting new seat belts installed after a man fell to his death from a roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia earlier this month, the company announced.
All Six Flags parks and rides will also undergo a review of safety procedures, the company said. No reopening dates for the Raging Bull have been publicly set, and no timeline was given for the safety review.
Hassan Kariem, 47, died after being ejected from the Georgia roller coaster Goliath, which is not similar to the wooden Six Flags Great America coaster Goliath in Gurnee. After his death, nine so-called “hypercoasters” manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard across the country were shut down “out of an abundance of caution,” including Raging Bull.
Now, the Georgia coaster and others with a similar restraint system will get seat belts, Six Flags Entertainment Corp. President and CEO John Reilly said in a letter to guests and members.
“Our hearts remain with the family and loved ones of Hassan Kariem, those injured, and everyone impacted by the tragic incident at Six Flags Over Georgia,” Reilly said. “What happened has deeply affected all of us at Six Flags.”
Reilly emphasized the park’s “comprehensive safety, maintenance and inspection programs,” and said the company is “building on our commitment to safety” with a focus on two priorities: “safety at the core,” and “commitment to ongoing improvement.”
The parks will be reinforcing safety precautions and taking “additional measures,” including adding seat belts to Goliath and other coasters. Rider operators complete a “comprehensive, multi-stage training program,” Reilly said, including “classroom instruction, hands-on training and supervised, on-the-job experience, with additional instruction and evaluation provided as necessary.
“We remain focused on reinforcing these practices and supporting our employees in their responsibility to put safety first,” he said.
The parks have also brought in “independent engineers and ride inspection specialists” to review current safety procedures across all of the rides and attractions at all parks, Reilly said.
“We are committed to carefully evaluating their findings and taking appropriate action to further strengthen our standards and culture of safety,” he said.
Goliath at Six Flags Over Georgia remains closed, pending safety reviews and clearances, he said.
“I know trust is earned through actions and not words. As CEO of Six Flags, I take that responsibility personally. We will continue to communicate about our progress and hold ourselves accountable to our commitments to you,” Reilly said.
Raging Bull stands at 202 feet tall and more than 5,000 feet long, according to the Six Flags website. Introduced in 1999 and manufactured by the same company behind Georgia’s Goliath, the 300-second ride feels “just like a bull trying to shake you off his back.”
Beyond the Raging Bull, other rides shut down include another Goliath at Six Flags Magic Mountain in California, Nitro at Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey, Leviathan and Behemoth at Canada’s Wonderland in Ontario, Fury 325 and Thunder Striker at Carowinds in North Carolina, and Orion and Diamondback at Kings Island in Ohio.
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