Woman Falls out of 14-Story Texas Roller Coaster

AP
July 21, 2013

The Texas Giant roller coaster ride sits idle at the Six Flags Over Texas park Saturday in Arlington, Texas. Investigators will try to determine if a woman who died while riding the roller coaster at the amusement park Friday night fell from the ride after some witnesses said she wasn't properly secured. (July 20, 2013)
The Texas Giant roller coaster ride sits idle at the Six Flags Over Texas park Saturday in Arlington, Texas. Investigators will try to determine if a woman who died while riding the roller coaster at the amusement park Friday night fell from the ride after some witnesses said she wasn’t properly secured. (July 20, 2013)

A woman who died while riding a 14-story roller coaster at Six Flags amusement park in North Texas apparently fell from the ride, police said.

Park spokeswoman Sharon Parker confirmed that a woman died while riding the Texas Giant roller coaster — dubbed the tallest steel-hybrid coaster in the world — but did not give specifics of what happened.

“We are committed to determining the cause of this tragic accident and will utilize every resource throughout this process,” Parker said in a statement Saturday. “It would be a disservice to the family to speculate regarding what transpired.”

Arlington Police Sgt. Christopher Cook told The Associated Press that police believe the woman fell from the ride at the Six Flags Over Texas park. He added that there appears to have been no foul play.

Cook also said police, fire and emergency medical services responded to the park around 6:45 p.m. Friday in reference to a woman who had fallen from a train car while riding a roller coaster. He said the woman was pronounced dead at the scene. The woman was not immediately identified by authorities.

The amusement park and the Texas Department of Insurance, which approves amusement rides and ensures they are inspected, are further investigating the accident, Cook said.

Carmen Brown told The Dallas Morning News that she was waiting in line to get on the Texas Giant and witnessed the woman being strapped in — and then what ensued.

“She goes up like this. Then when it drops to come down, that’s when it (the safety bar) released and she just tumbled,” Brown, of Arlington, told the newspaper.

Six Flags said the ride would be closed while the investigation continues.

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