Six Flags Investigates Fatal Accident on Texas Giant Coaster

By Dan Hart | July 22, 2013

Six Flags Entertainment Corp. is examining the Texas Giant roller coaster at its Six Flags Over Texas theme park following the death of a woman on July 19, the company said in an e-mailed statement.

The Arlington, Texas, Police Department is also investigating the incident, where the woman fell from the ride, according to a statement. Emergency personnel responded to the accident at about 6:45 p.m. local time and pronounced her dead at the scene.

The attraction has been closed since the incident, Sharon Parker, a theme-park spokeswoman, said via e-mail. She declined to identify the woman or provide any details of the accident until the investigation by Grand Prairie, Texas-based Six Flags is complete.

“We are committed to determining the cause of this tragic accident and will utilize every resource throughout this process,” Parker said in the statement.

The Dallas Morning News cited eyewitness reports saying that the woman’s safety restraint may have been loose. Investigators interviewed witnesses who said the woman was thrown from the ride as it rounded a turn, the newspaper said.

The Texas Giant debuted in 1990 as a wooden coaster, and was rebuilt and re-introduced in April 2011 as a hybrid wood and steel coaster, according to the park’s website. It measures 4,920 feet (1,500 meters) in length and its highest elevation is 14 stories, according to the theme park’s website.

Topics Texas Numbers

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