Our deepest condolences go out to the family and loved ones of Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, 42, of Atlanta, who was killed Monday on the Goliath roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia. We’re also thinking of the four people who were injured and everyone at the park who saw what happened.
Kariem was thrown from his seat on the ride on Monday, Oct. 12. Within hours, the fallout reached Canada.
Canada’s Wonderland, north of Toronto, closed Behemoth and Leviathan. La Ronde, in Montreal, closed its Goliath.
Nobody has said what went wrong. The Canadian rides were closed as a precaution, not because a problem was found with them.
What’s closed in Canada
| Park | Ride | Opened | Height | Top speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada’s Wonderland, Vaughan, Ont. | Leviathan | 2012 | 93 m | 148 km/h |
| Canada’s Wonderland, Vaughan, Ont. | Behemoth | 2008 | 70 m | 125 km/h |
| La Ronde, Montreal | Goliath | 2006 | 53 m | 110 km/h |
All three were built by Swiss manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard, which also built the Georgia ride.
Leviathan is the tallest and fastest roller coaster in Canada. Behemoth held that title for four years before Leviathan opened. And La Ronde’s Goliath held it before Behemoth.
Canada’s Wonderland told CBC it has no timeline for reopening either ride. The park has about a dozen Halloween-themed days left before it closes for the winter, so if the review runs long, both may be done for the season.
La Ronde said Goliath will stay closed until it hears back from the manufacturer. Six Flags sold La Ronde to EPR Properties this spring, so the Montreal park made its own decision to close the ride.
The rest of both parks remains open.
What happened in Georgia
It happened just before 4 p.m. Monday at Six Flags Over Georgia in Austell, about 16 kilometres west of downtown Atlanta.
Cobb County police said Kariem was thrown from his seat and struck other riders before landing below the ride. Witnesses told Atlanta’s WXIA he hit the coaster several times as he fell, and landed on the roof of a haunted house attraction beneath the track.
One rider told NBC News he watched the man rise out of his seat, turn sideways, and fall.
The train stopped near the top of the track. Crews brought riders down four at a time.
According to People, Kariem was on the ride with his son, while his wife and daughter were elsewhere in the park.
What investigators are looking at
Georgia’s Office of the Commissioner of Insurance and Safety Fire, which inspects amusement rides in the state, is investigating. The manufacturer is also reviewing what happened.
Goliath uses an individual lap bar for each rider. Officials haven’t said whether a restraint failed, or whether anything about the ride, its operation or something else played a part.
Six Flags said its staff and local authorities responded right away and that it’s co-operating with the investigation.
About Goliath
Goliath is a hypercoaster, a ride built around huge hills, high speed and the floating feeling riders call “airtime” rather than loops.
It opened in April 2006, rises about 200 feet and reaches about 70 mph (113 km/h). Each train carries 36 riders in nine rows of four.
It’s not the ride’s first death. In July 2006, a 45-year-old man lost consciousness during the ride and died of an apparent heart attack. That case was ruled a medical emergency and isn’t connected to Monday’s death.
Six Flags closed 9 coasters
Six Flags shut nine similar coasters at six parks “out of an abundance of caution”:
Canada’s Wonderland (Ontario): Behemoth and Leviathan
Six Flags Magic Mountain (California): Goliath
Six Flags Great Adventure (New Jersey): Nitro
Six Flags Great America (Illinois): Raging Bull
Carowinds (North Carolina): Fury 325 and Thunder Striker
Kings Island (Ohio): Orion and Diamondback
Closing similar rides after a serious incident is standard practice while operators check equipment and procedures. Sharing a manufacturer doesn’t mean sharing a defect.
Big coaster deaths are rare, but not unheard of. Last year, a 32-year-old man died of blunt-force injuries after riding a high-speed coaster at Universal’s Epic Universe in Florida.
Alberta’s own coaster tragedy
No Alberta rides are affected. But Edmonton knows what this feels like.
On June 14, 1986, three people were killed on the Mindbender at West Edmonton Mall, in what’s now Galaxyland. A problem with a wheel assembly caused the back car to derail. It remains one of the worst roller coaster accidents in Canadian history.
The ride was fixed and reopened in January 1987, and ran for decades without another fatal crash. Billed as the world’s largest indoor triple-loop roller coaster, it became one of the mall’s most famous sights.
West Edmonton Mall closed it for good in January 2023, and it was taken apart.
Before you go
If you’re planning a trip to Canada’s Wonderland or La Ronde, check each park’s website or app for the latest ride status. Assume Behemoth, Leviathan and Goliath are closed until the parks say otherwise.
Remembering Hassan Kariem
Beyond his name, age and hometown, little has been shared publicly about Kariem, and his family hasn’t made a statement.
Our thoughts are with his family, the riders who were hurt, and everyone who was at the park on Monday.
This story will be updated as investigators release more information.
Sources
Canada’s Wonderland
La Ronde
Georgia Office of Commissioner of Insurance and Safety Fire
Cobb County Police Department, October 13, 2026
Six Flags Entertainment Corporation statement, October 12, 2026
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