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July 8th, 2014
04:41 AM ET
Six Flags Roller Coaster Derails
A tree branch that fell on the tracks derailed a roller coaster car at a Six Flags amusement park Monday evening, leaving it dangling precariously.
Four people were injured on the Ninja ride at Six Flags Magic Mountain, the Los Angeles County Fire Department said. Two of the four were taken to a hospital as a precautionary measure.
The front part of the roller coaster detached from the track and hung at about a 45-degree angle, pointing to the ground.
The car was about 20 feet in the air, Los Angeles Fire Department supervisor Ed Pittmann told CNN affiliate KTLA.
Rescue workers climbed atop the track and used a thick rope to tie the front of the car to the track above.
By late Monday night, all 22 passengers had been rescued.
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I LOVE Magic Mountain, have a season pass every year, and have every intention of going at the very next opportunity. These things happen so rarely that I almost never even think about them. We were there about a week before this incident, and even rode this ride, but it didn't happen to us. I guess we're betting that it won't happen next time we go either. You risk death daily, even sitting on your own couch (I know a woman who was hit by a truck while she was at home sitting on her couch). Since my life could end at any minute, I can't think of a more thrilling way to go than on a 110 MPH roller roaster 400 feet in the air. Yippee!!!!
I actually see and understand both sides of this argument. I agree that you should not compare Roller coasters to transportation. Transportation is #1 a necessity for most people to live their general lives and go to work. Roller coasters are amusement rides and designed for entertainment. And #2, transportation involves many more variables than a park ride does. A ride sits in the same place, works the same way every day and other than cases like this with a fallen tree branch, rarely has variables thrown into its way. It also does not operate in poor weather. Each day we get in the car its a different scenario than the last. We have to take into account the variables of other drivers, traffic, road work, poor weather conditions, and so much more than can cause an accident. If our car sat still every day and only operated in good weather...I am sure the amount of car related injuries and deaths would also be significantly lower. Therefore comparing an amusement park ride to our vehicles is not a fair comparison at all. I also am a firm believer that we take risks each and every day and that no one is ever fully safe from harm or death regardless where you are (even your own home) so I don't see much point in constantly living in fear or worrying. BUT I also understand that in life one choice can potentially bring more risk of harm than another. Obviously choosing to walk down a dark alley at night instead of a well lit street poses more risk for danger. So therefore getting onto unnecessary roller coasters for nothing more than entertainment purposes that fly us 50 FT in the air and spin us around is a choice that leads to more risk than riding a merry go round lol. BUT that being said...I do agree that one should not spend their life in fear because the statistics on amusement park related injuries and deaths is very low so your odds of actually being hurt is very slim.
Well said.
There are risks to everything we do and the one thing I don't want to do is fear. I would rather live with abandon and have fun than be fearful of everything and live life carefully.
Honestly, as others had said, more people do die in car accidents, than in these roller coaster accidents. I mean really, are we just going to stop driving because of a car accident? No we won't. Why should we not ride roller coasters? More than 100 people are killed everyday from car accidents, and we haven't stopped driving yet have we? It's just a risk people take. You take a risk every day of your life, no matter where, or what you're doing. People need to stop worrying about things so much, and just live your life to the fullest. I'm not saying go out there, and do stupid stuff, but enjoy your life while it lasts.
you are more likely to get a blood clot on the brain from riding a roller coaster than by the roller coaster malfunctioning, yet nobody worries about that on a daily basis. don't believe me?? google blood clots and roller coasters and read all the stories
Six Flags is a Dan Synder owned company, need to know anything more?
Laws your and indiot....regardless of who owns the company...it was an act of nature....no preventative actions could have stopped this
Actually, as of 2009, Dan Snyder has no interest in Six Flags.
He lost his ownership of it during Six Flags CH 11 Bankruptcy in 2009. He has no ownership claim at all anymore.
Don't go there! No bueno!
I always suspected something like this could happen to this roller coaster, cause it's so close to the trees. Well, hope everything is alright now.
Its a roller coaster...its not supposed to be perfect. The only reason this happened is because of the tree branch falling. Eric, I agree with you! The chances of getting in a car accident, which is far more deadly, is higher than someone dying on a freaking amusement park ride. Are all of you going to stop working or traveling because someone got in a car accident? Are you going to quit going to school because of the shootings that have been occurring? Don't think so. Wake up and use your brains. And before someone says that is not a good comparison...yes it is. There are far less fatalities on roller coasters than there are in vehicles. There are even less plane crashes than car crashes....morons.
actually it is a ride that has a lot of people's lives on it every day, so yes it should be perfect!!!
Carries lots of lives every day so it should be "perfect"? Please. Nothing in life is perfect. Dont want to risk losing your life? Stay in your house. Wait around for the earth quake, or the fire or the tornado, or what ever that is eventually going to kill you regardless of your best efforts. I do get so annoyed when people think that each life should somehow be pampered and protected from all harm. Face it, neither your life nor mine have any real significanse to the world at large, other than our friends and families missing us briefly. Less than one tenth of one percent of the population is contributes vastly more than all the rest of us combined.....
So does the 405, but it isn't perfect, either. 🙂
Compare those statistics to the amount of people that drive everyday and the amount of people that ride roller coasters in the US yearly. Your stats are skewed.
There are also alot more cars and planes than there are rollercoasters, therefore making crashes more common...
Nah you are a moron and that is a horrible comparison. Cars, working, and school are a necessity for some people. Rollercoasters are an unnecessary risk that people take to have fun, when there are plenty of other ways to do so that don't risk your life. Other things being unsafe doesn't make anything else safer by comparison. Use your own brain
About 115 people die EVERY DAY from car accidents, yet only about 3 deaths each YEAR are from riiding roller coasters. I think I will take my cances on a coaster any day. And one died or was seriously injured in this incident. The only reason it is in the new is because it is a very RARE occurance.
Correction: NO ONE died in this incident or was seriously injured.
When I was young I loved the thrill. But then I woke up to the fact of why risk my life for a few moments of thrill? Obviously the risks go up as these parks have to keep building riskier rides to satisfy that thrill. Bet those people got a longer thrill then they cared for. Probably enough thrill to last a lifetime.
This is one of the reasons I do not get on those roller coaster rides!!
But you will climb into a car today and put your life at a whole different level of risk! People texting, face booking, and responding to stories while driving ( oops rated myself out). Lol!
People like you I really honestly don't like. You don't seem to take into account the major difference between a car and a rollercoaster....
Automobile transportation is a necessity in most cases, roller coasters are not.
Roller coasters are so fun...but I have to admit I think about the damn thing doing exactly this every time I get on haha