A list of US roller coaster fatalities dating back to 2003

A man who fell to his death from a roller coaster at an Atlanta-area amusement park was not the first to die on such a ride in recent years.

Authorities have not released information about how 42-year-old Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem was thrown from Goliath at Six Flags over Georgia on Monday. Several people also were injured.

Here's a look at other fatalities and injuries on U.S. roller coasters:

The park in Southern California announced last month that it was retiring its famous X2 roller coaster following lawsuits alleging riders suffered serious brain injuries. The park settled one wrongful-death lawsuit with the family of a 22-year-old rider who was rushed to a hospital with severe brain bleeding in 2022. He died a day later. The medical examiner’s office determined he died from “blunt head trauma.” Six Flags Entertainment Corp. said the ride had consistently passed safety tests.

A medical examiner concluded last year that a man who was unresponsive after riding a roller coaster at the Universal Orlando Resort park died from blunt impact injuries. Joshua Stephany, the medical examiner for the Orlando area, ruled the death an accident. The man in his 30s was found unresponsive after riding Stardust Racers.

In 2013, a woman riding a roller coaster in Texas died after she was thrown from her seat, fell 75 feet (23 meters) and struck a metal beam. Witnesses said the woman expressed concern about the Texas Giant roller coaster’s safety bar not completely engaging as the ride was starting.

A U.S. Army veteran who lost both legs in Iraq was killed in 2011 after he was thrown from a roller coaster at Darien Lake Theme Park & Resort in upstate New York. Investigators said operators did not follow rules posted at the ride’s entrance, which require that riders have both legs.

A 21-year-old rider fell to her death from a roller coaster at the amusement park in Louisiana in 2010. A state investigation could not determine a cause.

In 2003, a locomotive broke loose from a train on the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad roller coaster in California, killing a man and injuring multiple other riders. The car derailed after a guide wheel fell off. State investigators found the wheel was not tightened according to Disney’s standards and a safety wire was not installed.

FILE - This aerial view shows the X2 roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, Calif., on Sept. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

Cornell University is suspending parties and other social events at fraternity houses for the rest of the academic year and will give the New York State Police a role in investigating sex crimes on campus, university officials announced Tuesday, amid mounting outrage over its handling of allegations that a female student was sexually assaulted at a fraternity house in 2024.

The measures announced by Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff include a suspension of all parties and social events at Interfraternity Council houses through the end of the 2026-27 academic year and a new “zero tolerance” policy for violations that would result in the immediate emergency suspension of a chapter.

“These measures will provide time for a thorough review of fraternity life at Cornell to determine whether and how it can safely continue,” Kotlikoff wrote in a letter to the campus community.

He also committed to adding a case manager to the school’s Office of Civil Rights to help those who report sexual misconduct on the Cornell campus navigate the process, and to working with the New York State Police to allow their criminal investigators — who are independent of Cornell — to investigate allegations.

Crimes reported on Cornell’s campus are generally investigated by campus police, a department that has full law enforcement powers but is controlled by the university. The campus police force operates independently from municipal police in Ithaca, New York, where the university is located. Its officers investigated the 2024 gang rape allegations and presented their initial findings to the Tompkins County district attorney, who declined to prosecute within weeks of the woman making her first report to police.

New York’s governor removed the district attorney from the case this month after a public outcry over the lack of charges.

The investigation is now being led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, while Cornell has hired former Deputy U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates to conduct an independent review of the university’s response. New York State Police sometimes handle major crime investigations for small municipal police agencies, bringing in expertise that isn’t available locally.

Demonstrators march from the Washington Monument to the White House during a "Stop Sexual Violence" protest in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)