California’s Six Flags Magic Mountain is facing lawsuits from three people who alleged they suffered “catastrophic brain damage” after riding the X2 rollercoaster.
More than 100 other people also claimed that they experienced traumatic brain injuries from the attraction at the Valencia amusement park, according to the law firm representing the plaintiffs.
“These people went to Magic Mountain for some entertainment. For some family fun. And they suffered catastrophic brain damage,” Gary Dordick, an attorney, said during a press conference on Tuesday.
The ride has faced increased scrutiny in recent months amid reports of riders becoming gravely injured.
In July, two women experienced brain hemorrhages and had to undergo emergency surgery after going on the X2 – one of whom, 25-year-old Naomi Greer-Wilkinson, remains hospitalized. Attorneys say that doctors attributed the injuries to a “rapid acceleration-deceleration event” they experienced on the X2.
An August CNN investigation found that over nearly 20 years there have been more than a dozen reports of serious injuries, including two deaths, associated with the X2 coaster.
Six Flags said in a statement that it does not comment on pending litigation and the X2 had been closed since mid-July. According to the park website, Six Flags has a “comprehensive safety program” with “rigorous inspections [and] industry-leading standards”. There are daily inspections as well as regular evaluations by third-party ride inspectors, state and insurance inspectors, and company engineering and safety experts, according to Six Flags.
The park describes the X2 as a “fifth-dimension wing roller coaster [that] will have even the most hardened thrill seeker screaming” and that is “downright scary”. It features seats that rotate 360 degrees and flip as the ride reaches speeds of up to 76mph, racing through half loops that suddenly become “sheer drops”.
More than 300 people contacted Dordick’s firm to report injuries, he said. Attorney Christopher Bulone said that experts have said the ride was built to be more dangerous than others, and it has more variables and forces.
“It’s the design of this ride that makes it inherently dangerous and makes it dangerous in a way that no reasonable rider would expect,” he said. “Time after time innocent people are coming off the ride with permanent brain damage.”
