Topline
Six Flags Magic Mountain near Los Angeles is permanently shuttering X2, announcing the roller coaster’s closure Tuesday after a wave of lawsuits alleged the ride caused traumatic brain injuries and one wrongful death.
Jacque Marquez and Sarah Martinez, were one of the first riders to experience X2 during X2 Media Day At Six Flags Magic Mountain on May 22, 2008.
Photo by Mathew Imaging/WireImage
Key Facts
Six Flags Magic Mountain Park president Brian Oerding said the park is voluntarily closing the ride even though it “consistently passed a multitude of safety tests,” adding Six Flags decided to shutter X2 “because we believe it’s the right thing to do.”
Oerding acknowledged “guest confidence” around the ride has been affected, though he did not note the wrongful death lawsuit settlement or the three lawsuits joined by over 100 people accusing the ride of having a dangerous design and causing brain injuries.
X2, known for its unique design that allows seats to rotate 360 degrees forward or backward independent of the track’s orientation, has been open for 18 years and was ridden by over 16 million guests.
Users on social media debated the ride’s fate amid the lawsuits, with some arguing for its closure over publicly documented injuries and others arguing that riders can weigh risks themselves and should ride the coaster as instructed.
Tangent
Six Flags is also navigating lowered attendance and profits amid the X2 lawsuits. In its second quarter financial results published last month, the company logged 13.1 million visits, a 7% drop year-over-year. It also reported a net loss of $203 million, more than double the losses it recorded in the same quarter the year prior.
Key Background
Six Flags settled a wrongful death lawsuit last month stemming from a 2022 incident in which a 22-year-old man collapsed after riding X2 and died the next day. The man’s death was ruled an accident resulting from blunt force head trauma. The financial terms of the settlement are unknown. Prior to the settlement, two riders sustained brain injuries in July after riding X2 just days apart. X2 was temporarily closed after the second injury, according to CNN, which identified over a dozen reported injuries and hospitalizations involving X2 riders. One woman was in a coma weeks after the incident while the other experienced migraines, balance problems and memory loss. CNN reported that three neurosurgeons attributed the two brain injuries to the gravitational forces on X2, which reaches speeds of up to 76 mph, noting the ride features rapid acceleration and deceleration. A California Division of Occupational Safety and Health investigation has been opened into the ride and is ongoing.
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