Riders were expecting a fun day at Carowinds amusement park in North Carolina, US, but events took an unexpected turn and their rollercoaster ride got scary. The coaster suddenly stopped and the glitch continued for nearly 45 minutes, leaving riders hanging upside down. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.
According to Fox 59, riders on Friday got stuck on the Flying Cobra, the coaster that sends people through a 360-degree loop at speeds up to 50mph. The 125-foot tall looping coaster flips riders six times in total. But thrills turned to chills when the coaster stopped moving altogether for such a long time.
Speaking to the media outlet, Brandon Allen said that it was his first experience at a theme park on a rollercoaster but unfortunately the ride got stuck. “I personally watched my tears fall from the sky. It was terrifying,” Mr Allen said while describing the ordeal.
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“We go to the very top where they're backing you up, and he was doing a countdown. He goes, ‘We're sorry, we're having some technical difficulties,' and we thought he was joking because of the surprise element or something,” he told Fox 59.
He added that the minutes of being stuck felt like hours. The rider also revealed that they were told the ride will be fixed anywhere between 35 to 45 minutes. “Which may not be major, but it's a big deal when you're just facing the ground completely. There were parents trying to talk to their children screaming, ‘It's going to be okay'!” Mr Allen said.
He also noted that last month riders got stuck on the Electro Spin ride. Mr Allen said that it seems like this is happening so often now. “It's almost like it continues to happen, and that's what is so scary about it,” he added.
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Meanwhile, following the incident, the Carowinds amusement park released a statement regarding the incident, Fox 59 reported. It said that the park's maintenance team responded quickly and at no time were the guests in danger. The statement added that all guests were returned safely to the station and unloaded within 30 minutes. They were each given two fast pass vouchers as well.
