Man dies after falling from Goliath roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia

A man died Monday afternoon at Six Flags Over Georgia after falling from the Goliath roller coaster, according to witnesses. Several other people were injured. Cobb County police have confirmed the death but have not said how it happened.

The incident was reported just before 4 p.m., police said. Cobb County Police Sgt. E.D. Smith said in a statement that the department's Major Crimes Unit is investigating. The Cobb County Department of Emergency Communications confirmed the death but could not immediately give details.

The man has not been publicly identified.

What witnesses describe

Witnesses who spoke to Atlanta TV station WXIA said they watched the man fall from the ride. At least two said he struck parts of the ride several times on the way down.

"He fell and hit the car three different times," one witness said. That witness said the man appeared in the group's souvenir ride photo as he fell.

Witness Logan Conner told the station he was on the ride with his fiancée when he saw the man come out of his seat. "The man started levitating in the air sideways," Conner said. "We made direct eye contact with him."

A witness told WXIA the man had been sitting with a child. Another witness told Atlanta station 11Alive that the man landed on the roof of a haunted house attraction. A passenger also told 11Alive that park workers checked the restraints before the ride began.

Police have not confirmed any of those details. None of them establishes why the man left the ride.

Evacuation and park response

The coaster stopped partway through the ride, and passengers were stuck on the track until emergency crews got them down. Video from the scene shows riders climbing out and walking down a staircase attached to the lift hill, high above the ground.

Six Flags issued a statement Monday. "We are deeply saddened by the guest incident at our park today," a spokesperson said. "Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with the guest's family, friends, and loved ones."

The park said it is supporting affected guests and team members and is cooperating fully with local authorities. It said it will not share more details "out of respect for the family's privacy."

A spokesperson said Monday evening that similar attractions at Six Flags' sister parks across the country have been temporarily closed "out of an abundance of caution." The Georgia park was already scheduled to be closed Tuesday, the spokesperson said.

The ride

Goliath opened in 2006. It was designed and built by Bolliger & Mabillard of Switzerland. According to the park's website, it reaches 70 mph and a height of 200 feet. It has a 170-foot first drop, a 175-foot second drop and a 540-degree spiral, with forces up to 4 Gs.

The ride has had a previous fatality. In 2006, a 45-year-old man died of an apparent heart attack after riding it. Authorities inspected the coaster afterward and found it was operating properly.

Other safety scrutiny at Six Flags

The death comes as Six Flags is already under scrutiny over ride safety at another park. Six Flags Magic Mountain in California closed its X2 coaster on July 12. That was one day after attorney Christopher Bulone said one of his clients suffered a catastrophic brain injury after riding it.

Near the end of September, the park announced it would retire X2 permanently. The decision followed a CNN investigation this summer that found more than a dozen reports of serious injuries and hospitalizations tied to the ride, including at least two deaths.

Magic Mountain President Brian Oerding wrote in a blog post that X2 had "consistently passed a multitude of safety tests." He said the park decided to close it "because we believe it's the right thing to do." He added: "Ride safety is a cornerstone of our business, and when we see guest confidence affected, we take it seriously."

Six Flags was named in multiple lawsuits in September from riders who claimed brain injuries on X2. The park said at the time that it does not comment on pending lawsuits. The company also settled a wrongful-death suit brought by the family of a 22-year-old man who died after riding X2 in 2022.

No source has linked Monday's death to the X2 cases. They involve a different ride, a different park and a different alleged injury mechanism.

What remains unknown

Police have not said how the man left the ride. They have not said whether a restraint failed, whether the ride malfunctioned, or whether something else happened. They have also not given the number or condition of the injured; one account puts the number of other injured at four, but police have said only "several."

The Major Crimes Unit's investigation is ongoing, and the cause has not been established. The next concrete steps are the police findings and whether Goliath reopens after the park's scheduled Tuesday closure. Six Flags has not said when the ride or the similar rides closed at its other parks will return to service.