A tree branch that fell on the tracks derailed a roller coaster car at
a Six Flags amusement park Monday evening, leaving it dangling precariously.
Four people were injured on the Ninja ride at
Six Flags Magic Mountain, the Los Angeles County Fire Department said. Two of
the four were taken to a hospital as a precautionary measure.
The front part of the roller coaster detached
from the track and hanged at about a 45-degree angle, pointing to the ground.
The car was about 20 feet in the air, Los
Angeles Fire Department supervisor Ed Pittmann told CNN affiliate KTLA.
Rescue workers climbed atop the track and
used a thick rope to tie the front of the car to the track above.
By late Monday night, all 22 passengers had
been rescued.
The derailment happened after a tree branch
fell on the track, obstructing the train, Six Flags Magic Mountain spokeswoman
Sue Carpenter said.
Six Flags describes the Ninja ride as a
"stealth assassin" on its website.
"The black belt of roller coasters whips
you into submission," the site says.
Passengers ride the swinging coaster
suspended from the track instead of riding on top of the track.
The derailment is the latest in a series of
high-profile roller coaster accidents in recent years.
Last July, Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington
shut down its Texas Giant roller coaster after a woman was thrown from her seat
and plunged to her death.
Between 1990 and 2010, more than 92,000
children were injured in amusement ride-related incidents, according to a study
by the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children's Hospital
in Ohio. That's an average of more than 4,000 injuries per year.
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