MABELTON, Ga. - Cobb County emergency crews rushed to Six Flags Over Georgia on Monday afternoon after an incident on the Goliath roller coaster left one person dead and several others injured.
Police are investigating the deadly fall at the Mableton theme park, where shaken witnesses watched a rider fly from the ride into nearby woods.
Goliath ride incident in Mableton
What we know:
Officers assigned to Six Flags Over Georgia responded to an emergency call at approximately 3:58 p.m. on Monday.
Cobb County police confirmed that several people reported injuries and one person died during the incident involving a roller coaster.
Detectives with the department's Major Crimes Unit responded to investigate the circumstances surrounding the fatal incident.
Police officials stated that additional details will be released as they become available and are confirmed.
Witnesses describe Goliath fall
What they're saying:
Brittany Landry of Winder said she was standing in the back row waiting to board the Georgia Scorcher when she looked up at the passing Goliath coaster train.
"Well, we didn't even know, so we were just trying to figure out how we're going to play in the last two hours because there's two hours left. We're still trying to squeeze dinner in, and we were making arrangements and some of the lines were getting really long, so we're like, you know, let's go."
"The Goliath hasn't had a long line all day because you have to be so many inches to ride it, you now? And so, I was like, let' go down, we'll go down by the Georgia Scorcher and the Twisted Cyclone, see if those lines are long, No, we'll come back."
"We'll ride the Golliath again. And we went down to the Georgia Scorcher and the line wasn't long, so we got in it."
"And that's when it happened. So, the track goes over the Georgia scorcher and as we're standing there and it's on the bunny hops and as were standing there, you know, just waiting our turn and we're just standing there and we just, I just look and because I'm watching the rise cause that's the best part of the track, you know and we'd just look and I just see somebody fly out and just fly into the woods."
"And they were just like, ‘Oh my God, somebody flew off’ and the kids next to us took off running and my son took off to go check but the woods are all blocked off. And I wasn't sure because I was like, that's not what happened, that's what I saw."
"Maybe somebody had a bag or something. And so, we finished what we were doing, and we were free to go."
"I ran and I checked and I was absolutely right. I knew what I just saw."
"Yes ma'am, I knew we saw. I don't know."
Landry estimated that the coaster was approximately 150 feet away when the rider fell into the wooded area below.
"We were on there and all my kids are in the car and coming home with me today. I don't know for sure if it was a kid or an adult because it was probably about 150 feet away and then up when it happened."
"So, it was just an object, you know, you could see it was an human-formed object just flying. And so, I don't know, but I know that we're all making it home today and we're all, we're okay."
Landry broke down in tears as she processed what she had witnessed after riding the attraction earlier in the day.
"I broke down. I just broke down, yeah."
"I broke because we were just on there. We were just, we were on there."
"There's size restrictions, you know, if you're too small or too big, you can't get on there and the person that flew, like, I don't know, the buckle came open. The buckle came up and nothing was wrong with the ride."
"The buckle come open."
Comparing the restraints to rides at other regional theme parks, Landry expressed grief for the victim.
"We've been to Carowinds, and some of the roller coasters there that are built like that have buckles and leg straps. But the glide only has a leg strap."
"I mean, we've always felt kind of like we were safe. It's an adventure."
"It is an adrenaline junkie move, you know? It's what you do."
"You go to ride roller coaster to get the adrenaline rush, but you always expect to get back. You don't expect to not come home."
"I'm sorry for whoever that was. I'm so sorry that happened to you today."
"I'm sorry it could have been any of us. I'm so sorry."
Another guest, Deysi Gonzalez, was waiting in the second-to-last row of the Georgia Scorcher line with her brother and mother when other visitors reacted in shock.
"So at first, before anything really happened, we were enjoying our day. We had just got little man on the Goliath."
"So, it was his first time on the goliath and then after that we got on the Batman and everything. We were just having fun and we were gonna go get, we were going to go to the Goliath after getting or after getting off a different ride."
"And so, my mom was like, hey, let's go do this instead because we were go get dinner next. And so we were walking to the other side of the park and we were waiting in line for the Georgia Scorcher and we we're up next."
"And we were like second to last row. And me and my brother were just standing there watching the Goliath go by."
"And then I looked over to the ride and so I got distracted. I didn't even see anybody fly out."
"But the person next to us were like, oh, oh no, no, I'm getting out of this line. Somebody just fell off of the Golaith."
"And so I looked and everybody's just running over there to the woods and everything. So my brother, being the nosy kid he is, he runs off to the woods to go see what happened."
"And then he comes back. He's like, I think somebody just fell off the ride."
"I think just somebody just fall off a ride. It wasn't the bag or anything."
"I think someone just fell of the ride and then so we finished, we got on the Georgia Scorcher. We were just doubting ourselves, like saying that nobody fell off of the right."
"And as soon as we got off, we were walking that way to the Goliath to see what happen and somebody confirmed that somebody fell off."
Gonzalez said panic set in because the child in her family was similar in size to descriptions of the victim.
"Me, I got really panicked because knowing that we had just got off of that ride and that they were describing how little the kid was. And I started thinking, I was like, wait, we literally just got off the ride and little man over here is the same size as the kid who probably just fell off."
"And so we started panicking and everything, and I started getting overwhelmed because of how many people were crying and everything."
Gonzalez added that another guest shared an account regarding the ride's safety restraint.
"Um, I really don't want to go back because of that what just happened because somebody was also explaining to me that the buckle felt like the buckle came up as they were going down, like as they we're going back up and then going down."
Prior to the incident, Gonzalez said she felt completely safe on the rides.
"I felt really safe, like I was perfectly fine and everything, I was enjoying my time," Gonzalez said.
Offering sympathy to the victim's loved ones, Gonzalez added, "I feel really bad for the people whose family that is."
When asked whether she would return to the park in the future, Gonzalez said, "Probably, but I don't really know if I want to."
Park and city official reaction
Local perspective:
Six Flags Over Georgia is located in Mableton, though it carries an Austell mailing address at 275 Riverside Parkway SW, Austell, GA 30168.
City of Mableton Mayor Michael Owens issued a statement addressing the tragedy.
"We are deeply saddened by the tragic incident at Six Flags Over Georgia today. Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with the individual’s family, friends, and loved ones during this difficult time," Owens said.
"Mableton Public Safety Director Dr. Kerry Stallings is coordinating with Cobb County Police and park security as the situation is addressed," Owens added.
"We are grateful to the personnel responding to this incident and will continue to support coordination with the appropriate authorities. Out of respect for the family and the ongoing investigation, we will refrain from commenting further at this time."
A spokesperson for Six Flags Over Georgia, Hurricane Harbor and Six Flags White Water also released 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 spokesperson said.
"We are also providing support to the guests and team members affected," the spokesperson continued.
"The park team and local authorities responded immediately, and we are cooperating fully with local authorities as they complete their investigation. Out of respect for the family’s privacy, we will not be sharing additional details at this time."
Background on hypercoaster attraction
The backstory:
Goliath stands 200 feet tall and operates as a hypercoaster reaching maximum speeds of 70 mph.
Riders plunge down an initial 170-foot drop before ascending and diving into another 175-foot drop.
The attraction features a 12-story drop, a 540-degree spiral, razor-sharp turns and colossal bunny hop hills.
Riders experience gravitational forces reaching up to 4 Gs as the train travels along the course.
Ongoing Cobb County investigation
What's next:
Cobb County Police Department investigators are leading the investigation into the incident. Both park representatives and city leaders stated they are refraining from further comment out of respect for the family's privacy as police complete their investigation.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from Cobb County Police Department press releases, video interviews recorded with park guests Brittany Landry and Deysi Gonzalez, as well as official statements from City of Mableton Mayor Michael Owens and Six Flags Over Georgia spokespersons. This article has been updated since it was originally published.