The Mystery That Forced Six Flags To Shut Down Popular Ride

Six Flags Magic Mountain has kept its X2 roller coaster shut down for over a month after a rider was found unconscious.

The park in Valencia, California, took the ride offline on July 5 when the Los Angeles County Fire Department was called to the scene. 

The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health has since opened an inspection, though it has declined to release any details while the review continues.

A spokesman for the park confirmed only that X2 is not running, saying, “We hope to get the ride back up as soon as possible. We do not have an estimated time of when X2 will be reopening.”

The park has given no further explanation about why the coaster remains closed or whether any safety or maintenance work is necessary. It has also not disclosed anything about the condition of the rider involved in the July incident.

X2 is billed as one of the most intense roller coasters in the world and the first to deliver a fourth-dimension experience. Riders sit in seats that spin a full 360 degrees and reach out on wings away from the track.

The course includes face-down drops and hits 76 miles per hour along its 3,610-foot track. The park calls it a rite of passage for the ultimate daredevil, the kind of ride that leaves even the most hardened thrill seeker screaming. It opened as X in 2002 and was later renamed X2.

The shutdown comes as a separate case involving the X2 roller coaster moves toward trial. A Garden Grove family has alleged that their 22-year-old son, Christopher Hawley, suffered a catastrophic brain bleed after riding X2 in June 2022.

According to the lawsuit, the coaster suddenly and violently jolted to a halt while Hawley was riding. After the ride, he said his head hurt, then grabbed a rail to keep himself up before he went down and lost consciousness. He was taken to Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital and died the next day. A jury trial is set to begin in September.