Dallas, TXA woman fatally fell at Six Flags Over Texas near Dallas while riding the world's steepest wooden roller coaster Friday night. This morning the Six Flags released a statement that clarified the Texas Giant investigation is “internal” and ongoing. This is the second ride fatality at the park since it opened in 1961.
The woman’s name hasn’t yet been released. Witnesses believe the woman’s children were with her and several witnesses have reported to various media outlets that the woman was not secured correctly in her seat. In a statement the park spokesperson said the woman died "on" the ride, but park visitors told NBC 5 of Dallas that they saw her fall from the roller coaster shortly after 6:30 pm. Paramedics were soon at the scene.
One witness said that the woman who fell was concerned that she was not secure in her seat and that she had voiced her concern to a park employee before starting the ride. Another witness, Joshua Paul Fleak, posted on Twitter that it looked like the woman’s restraint had come undone. “Just witnessed someone fly off of the Texas giant two seats in front of me,” he tweeted. “… Coaster turned and she was gone.” Others said the woman was thrown from the roller coaster as it rounded a turn.
The Texas Giant, which opened in 1990 as the world’s tallest wooden roller coaster was closed in November 2009 to convert it to a steel-and-wood hybrid. The new, rebuilt ride includes 4,700 feet of new track along with some of the original structure. The expanded coaster, which reopened in April 2011, claimed a smoother ride and a higher top speed of 65 mph. It features a 79-degree drop and three turns sharper than 90 degrees.
Another amusement park accident Friday involved a boat on a thrill ride at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. The boat rolled backward down a hill and flipped over in water when the ride malfunctioned, causing injury to seven people in the vessel.
The second fatality at Six Flags happened in 1999 when an Arkansas woman drowned when a Roaring Rapids raft capsized. Ten other people were injured in that accident. And in March 2006, passengers on the park’s Texas Tornado ride were injured when the ride slowed rapidly and several of its swings collided.
Six Flags Entertainment Corp. emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2010. In April 2013, the company posted record revenue.
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