Six Flags' X2 Linked to 2 July Brain Injuries as Ride Stayed Open After 70 Prior Complaints
Updated
Updated · CNN · Aug 27
Six Flags' X2 Linked to 2 July Brain Injuries as Ride Stayed Open After 70 Prior Complaints
3 articles · Updated · CNN · Aug 27
Summary
Two women suffered severe brain hemorrhages and underwent emergency surgery in July after riding Six Flags Magic Mountain’s X2, with one still in a coma and the other relearning how to walk and talk.
Three neurosurgeons said the injuries were caused by a traumatic rapid acceleration-deceleration event on the ride, whose rotating seats spin 360 degrees at nearly 80 mph.
CNN found X2 has been tied to more than a dozen serious injuries and hospitalizations over nearly two decades, including two deaths and at least 70 head and neck complaints in the three years before a 2022 fatality.
Six Flags closed X2 on July 12, nearly a day after the second July injury, but has not explained the shutdown; California regulators said only that an inspection is ongoing.
The findings raise fresh questions about why the coaster kept operating despite years of lawsuits, rider warnings and expert concerns that repeated brain injuries on the same ride signaled a safety problem.