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Six Flags coaster death

News · Heat 1.5 / 10 · 8 shows · 44m airtime

Hassan Jihad Kareem, a schoolteacher, was thrown from the Goliath roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia on October 13 and died; he was riding with his six-year-old son. Witnesses heard clicking and unclicking before the ride started and say the restraint on his seat became unlatched. The Goliath has no seatbelt, only a pull-down latch, and Georgia requires annual coaster inspections. Georgia's insurance and safety fire office opened a separate investigation. Six Flags closed nine coasters across six parks, its stock fell 14 points to its lowest level since 2009, and Magic Mountain closed X2 and a second ride after about 20 brain-damage lawsuits, while the park kept its Final Destination-themed Fright Fest maze open. What remains open is…

How 8 podcasts covered it

  1. The Breakfast Club, 2026-10-13 (26:13 to 30:14)
    Recounts the witness clicks before the ride
    Front Page News segment on the Goliath death: witnesses describe clicking and unclicking before the ride left, Six Flags shut down coasters nationwide as a precaution, and the hosts note the X2 closure two weeks earlier.
    New angle: Witnesses heard clicking and unclicking before the Goliath ride started; Six Flags shut down coasters nationwide as a precaution.
  2. The Megyn Kelly Show, 2026-10-14 (16:06 to 20:09)
    Names the victim and adds the state probe
    Names the man killed on Goliath - 42-year-old Hassan Jihad Ibn Kareem of Atlanta, an IT manager at a charter school - and adds the four other injuries, the Major Crimes Unit interviews, and a separate state insurance and safety fire investigation. The closures now cover nine coasters at six parks in the U.S. and Canada.
    New angle: Georgia's insurance and safety fire office opened a separate investigation into the Goliath accident.
  3. Start Here, 2026-10-14 (16:49 to 22:53)
    Reports the unlatched restraint and inspection rules
    ABC's Faith Abube reports from Mableton with the restraint detail: witnesses say the restraint on Kareem's seat became unlatched, and his body hit multiple parts of the ride before reaching the ground. Adds Georgia's annual inspection requirement and the unanswered question of the maintenance records.
    New angle: Witnesses say the restraint on Kareem's seat became unlatched; Georgia requires annual coaster inspections.
  4. The Breakfast Club, 2026-10-14 (0:42 to 3:19)
    Leads with the death and the stock drop
    Leads the episode with the Goliath death: the 42-year-old educator, witness accounts of the fall, the unanswered question of cause, the nine rides shut down, the X2 closure two weeks earlier, and the 14-point stock drop.
    New angle: Six Flags shut down nine rides across its parks and its stock fell 14 points to its lowest level since 2009.
  5. Morning Brew Daily, 2026-10-14 (21:20 to 23:03)
    Recaps the Goliath fall and coaster closures
    First pass at the Six Flags fatality: the Goliath fall outside Atlanta, the nine coasters closed across six parks, and the X2 retirement two weeks earlier. Notes the designer's safety record and the stock's 80 percent slide since the Cedar Fair merger.
    New angle: Six Flags closed nine coasters across six parks after a man fell from Goliath.
  6. The TMZ Podcast, 2026-10-14 (8:45 to 14:08)
    Reports the latch-only restraint and nine rides shut
    Covers the fatal fall from the Goliath coaster: the lap-latch-only restraint, the investigation, the park's Friday reopening and nine other rides shut down, plus a prior brain-injury lawsuit over a California Six Flags coaster.
    New angle: The Goliath coaster has no seatbelt, only a pull-down latch, and nine other Six Flags rides were shut down.
  7. Juicy Scoop with Heather McDonald, 2026-10-15 (58:24 to 1:01:56)
    Adds the lawsuits behind the X2 closure
    Turns to a death on Goliath at Six Flags Georgia and the closure of X2 and a second Magic Mountain ride, with Heather's own X2 story and the roughly 20 brain-damage lawsuits behind the shutdown.
    New angle: Six Flags Magic Mountain closed X2 and a second ride after about 20 brain-damage lawsuits.
  8. Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, 2026-10-16 (1:09 to 5:20)
    Recaps the coaster shutdown and the replacement
    Opens on the Six Flags coaster shutdown and the Goliath death, then turns to the new Bakunawa coaster replacing Kingda Ka. Mostly reaction and jokes, with the hosts noting they could not find a tally of Six Flags casualties.
    New angle: Six Flags shut down nine coasters nationwide after a death on the Goliath at Six Flags Over Georgia.
  9. The TMZ Podcast, 2026-10-16 (7:56 to 13:34)
    Covers the Goliath fall and the open maze
    Covers the fatal fall from Goliath at Six Flags Over Georgia and the park keeping its Final Destination-themed Fright Fest maze open, with a spokesperson saying the maze does not include scenes from the theme. Debates the ride's lap-latch-only restraints and recalls a $300 million Florida drop-ride settlement before drifting to Disneyland and Gilroy Gardens.
    New angle: Six Flags Over Georgia kept its Final Destination-themed Fright Fest maze open after the Goliath death; the ride has only a lap latch, no seatbelts.
  10. Adam Carolla Show, 2026-10-21 (58:34 to 1:05:46)
    Riffs on the coaster death and predicts a lawsuit
    Turns a fatal roller coaster fall at Six Flags Over Georgia into riffs on the victim's name, airport security and burdensome baby names. The only substance is a guess that rider error caused the fall and a prediction that the family will sue the park.
    New angle: A schoolteacher named Hassan Jihad Kareem fell to his death from a Six Flags Over Georgia coaster while riding with his six-year-old son.
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