Boy killed at Six Flags Over Georgia

[undeterred]

Source: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Boy killed at Six Flags Over Georgia
By RHONDA COOK
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 06/28/08

A 17-year-old boy was killed Saturday when he was struck by the popular Batman ride at Six Flags Over Georgia. According to a statement from the amusement park, the boy climbed over two six-foot fences around the popular Batman roller coaster restricted area, as multiple signs clearly state: Danger Zone/Do Not Enter/Authorized Personnel Only," the statement from park spokeswoman Hela Sheth.

"Some witnesses have stated that the individual was trying to retrieve something he had lost," Sheth said. "Others reported that he was trying to touch the ride. This is merely speculation at this point, and we are working with park visitors and local police to learn more."

Officials have not released the boy's name. No one on the ride was injured, Sheath said in the statement. The boy's family was at the park. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the family," the Six Flags statement said.

Cobb County police declined to confirm reports that the boy was decapitated, and the park statement did not include that detail. Attempts to reach Six Flags officials for more information have been unsuccessful.

http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/cobb/stories/2008/06/28/six_flags_death.html



Read more: http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/cobb/stories/2008/06/28/six_flags_death.html

[LeftyMom]

1. That happens every couple of years at the one nearest here.

Usually because some future rocket scientist decides to go over the fence with the "Danger! Do not climb fence!" signs all over it in umpteen languages to retrieve his hat. :eyes:

[imax2268]

20. The two...

SIX FOOT fences would have been enough of a sign for me...

[Donnachaidh]

2. It was bound to happen --

I've only been once, and found it to be such a MESS we swore never to go back. Overcrowded (overpriced), with too few security people, or *aid* people. Even if he had just been injured, I wonder if they would have gotten help to him in time to save him.

[merwin]

5. He was 17 years old. That's old enough to read danger signs.

It's 100% his fault, not the park's fault. It's akin to climbing the fence at a power substation and getting electrocuted.

[DRoseDARs]

6. Indeed. What was the park to do, put razor blades on the top of BOTH fences he climbed over?

Sad story, but you are right: This is 100% his own fault.

[BamaSunshine]

41. youth killed at six flags

I have two sons and three grandsons 16,14,&5.
One can't say what a young man will impulsively do or a young female , drat can any of us? young or old.Readers just think of the times u may have taken a chance and by the "GRACE OF GOD" u are still here!

INDEED, put barbed wire at the top of the fences surrounding the rides,PLUS WARNING SIGNS.
I was horrified this morning to read of this tragedy, my 14 year old grandson was just there a week ago and had an awesome time,and if it is true about the youth trying to retrieve a hat,sounds like a typical male youth. I am going to be sure my grandsons are alerted to this horrific accident. God be with his family & Yours.

[BearSquirrel2]

64. Build em' higher they'll say ...

I would wish that young people would look at this incident and learn. But I know that every few years or so some kid gets run over by some train he was trying to race. And after that, there is a big cry to put up more train crossings. This has about the same justification as putting up crossing gates at highway intersections as getting hit by a semi at 50mph isn't quite as dramatic, but you'll be equally dead.

So in the end, I think the youth of America will collectively call out for 10 foot fences and people to go fetch the shit that they lost because they didn't read the fucking signs.

[onenote]

77. and if they put razor wire and someone tries to climb the fence, cuts an artery

and bleeds to death, will you still say that person was just a typical youth?

Lots of people go to that park and 99.9 percent of them heed the warning signs and don't try to climb over two fences to get to a restricted area. The one thing the victim of this unfortunate event was not is "typical".

[JeanGrey]

80. Actually, NO, then the same ones would be screaming

"Who the hell puts razor wire on top of fences that kids might climb on"? And they will want to sue for a million dollars.

[Dr. Strange]

86. I'd laugh at your post...

if it weren't so flippin' true.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

48. where in the bible does it say you have to heed signs?

signs are the tools of the devil.

[Donnachaidh]

92. those rides are VERY close to those fences

Please.

Entirely his fault? Sorry - I live in the area, and the way this *park* advertises non-stop to these kids, and then doesn't hire enough security - and then practically builds the rides to look as if they overhang the fences?

The park should be charged with negligence for starters. And I hope the family of the kid has a very good lawyer, and cuts into the profits of the ceo of six flags with a BIG knife.

[merwin]

93. He hopped two six foot fences with caution signs to get where he was.

That's just stupidity.

[Seeking Serenity]

94. Oh, this is just silly.

Sorry - I live in the area, and the way this *park* advertises non-stop to these kids

"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, this boy didn't want to scale those two fences that were clearly marked. The ADVERTISING made him do it. It wasn't his fault."

Spare. Me.

[TommyO]

24. None of this negates the fact that he scaled two fences

to get to a restricted area that resulted in his demise. Given the configuration of the ride, it's amazing that nobody on the ride was hurt given the fact that your legs hang below the train. A similar death in Wildwood, NJ resulted in a broken leg for a rider on the coaster.

[MercutioATC]

3. I have sympathy for the family...but this is just Darwinism at work.

"Playing in traffic" is never a good idea. It's O.K. to feel bad for the people who will feel the loss while rolling one's eyes at the stupidity of the victim.

[Whoa_Nelly]

4. Yikes!

Sad story.

[Blue_Tires]

34. yeah, i went on that when it first opened

great, great ride at the time...

if it is true the kid jumped 2 fences to get something himself (rather than calling a park worker), then it's just uncle chuck collecting his dues again...

[Codeine]

59. I hated that ride.

It's too sudden and brutal. More length between the various "events" would have improved it by giving the rider time to anticipate and get well and truly scared.

As it was I just felt assaulted.

[Blue_Tires]

67. that was my assessment as well

but it was such a change of pace from other coasters then...

[downindixie]

7. He was 17 nd thought he would live forever,

How sad that this young man lost his life by doing something silly! Bless him and his family.Something silly that we have all done and survived!

[Dervill Crow]

90. We've all done silly things, but this goes far beyond "silly."

I do feel bad for his family.

[happygoluckytoyou]

8. i'd sad for the family.... and YES razor wire!!! better cut than dead

[TommyO]

25. How much do we have to do to protect people

from their own, sometimes deadly, stupidity?

This was a death that was preventable by the idiot not jumping *TWO* fences to get into a restricted area.

[Codeine]

28. Razor wire is a guaranteed lawsuit

from the first dumbass who touches it.

[Mike Daniels]

85. How about we put guard towers up as well with orders to shoot to disable?

It's not like the guy puddle jumped over 3 foot high railings to get into the ride area.

When there's 2 six foot fences between you and your goal it may very well be for a good reason.

[Indenturedebtor]

9. My condolences to the family

But seriuosly it's not as though he was 11 years old. I don't blame the park for this.

Stupid: Sometimes it's fatal.

[Bush_MUST_Go]

10. Sad story. What a horrible thing for his parents.

I guess almost all of us have done really, really idiotic things when we were teenagers..... luckily we usually survive our own stupidity.

[Indenturedebtor]

12. I've done a lot of stupid things.

Pissing on a 50,000 volt electrical substation, playing in traffic, getting in the way of a 100mph rollercoaster weren't among them.

I feel bad for the family but I have no pity for the moron in question. The family did nothing to deserve their grief.

[swilton]

11. The fascination with 'Amusement Parks'?

A narcotic keeps the masses entertained and ignorant less shoud they know what's really going on they might become restless.

I feel for the famiy -

I know this may sound stupid but this woudn't have happened in a nature preserve or a library.

:crazy: :silly:

[tchunter]

13. i agree...

since i also look down on anything that people might consider fun

have a little sympathy for the family

[Spouting Horn]

19. Right, in the nature preserve

it would have been a mountain lion or a grizzly bear.

:shrug:

[INDIA]

53. or a cliff, or a fast running river with "do not swim" signs all over the place....nt

[jmondine]

22. I don't know...

It seems like television fits that description better, as amusement parks are something the masses indulge in only about once or twice a year, while most American families watch television far more frequently.
I think a better analogue would be that amusement parks are a substitute for going out and having real, life-enriching adventures.

And while I agree with the library, I've seen people, especially teenagers, do some damn fool things in nature. I remember one instance of a group of them wading into the deceptively calm pool of water just above a 600 foot waterfall. Apparently, the word "undertow" was new to them.

[JVS]

38. It's the traction trust trying to enslave the minds of the youth!

Now where's my health tonic?

[TommyO]

26. There are more than a few amusement park fans here

Thank you for insulting us as ignorant.

[Codeine]

27. I almost couldn't read your post;

the words are so faint from down here. Use all caps next time you post from a position so lofty and angelic.

[hyphenate]

35. Not unless there was a hunting law there

About a month, month and a half ago, a grandfather shot his grandson to death--no safety on the gun, and the grandson was walking in front of him. I'd say there was a huge "FAIL" in that family. Some people are just too fucking stupid for their own good.

[JVS]

36. Jesus, did you hit a timewarp from 1900

Amusement parks, along with demon rum a scourge on our nation.

[AngryOldDem]

43. WTF?

So now **any** kind of diversion or fun is off limits? Amusement parks are just one more way to keep the masses tamed and numbed? Welcome to the revolution, comrade.

And you're right...the comment about the nature preserve and the library is stupid, mainly because it's pointless and well, uh, .... stupid.

(But I'll give you the benefit of the doubt that you also intended to use the sarcasm smilie, which is also included with your DU membership. Learn to use it so the rest of us know how in the hell to take what you post let alone make sense of it. Thanks.)

[DS1]

55. Nobody is impressed by this post

:eyes:

[Codeine]

60. Are you kidding?! I was TOTALLY impressed.

I didn't know they even made bags that douch-ey. ;)

[Carni]

56. Good God how dour can you get?

Thanks for this mega dose of stupid...

THIS kind of purist mentality is what gives environmetalists and Liberals a bad name!

[Enrique]

62. libraries are death traps

silent killers.

[jakem]

74. i did notice our library was seeming a little silent but deadly lately...

[Haole Girl]

63. That is pretty elitist

And shows how little you understand nature, too.

:crazy:

[iverglas]

66. George Carlin likely agreed

http://www.motherjones.com/arts/qa/1997/03/outspoken.html

On Mickey Mouse's 65th "birthday":

Q: Let me read you something from your own act: "I hope Mickey dies. I do. I hope he goddamn dies. I hope he gets ahold of some tainted cheese..."

A: "...and dies lonely and forgotten behind the baseboard of a soiled bathroom in a poor neighborhood with his hand in Goofy's pants."

Q: What did Mickey Mouse ever do to you?

A: That's not how these things generate themselves. What Mickey Mouse did to me was to represent something -- in this case, meaningless shit on the news, the way they fill our minds with all this stuff to distract us from the real tragedy. He's a symbolic figure.

I'm a fan of exciting rides myself (despite my father's near-death experience with a rollercoaster, the fact being that rollercoasters and other rides are being built to beyond the human brain's limit of endurance). But amusement parks as a phenomenon, I think the sentiment has validity.

[DS1]

69. So what?

is he now the go-to guy on life? Ridiculous.

[iverglas]

79. I say there

is he now the go-to guy on life?

I dunno. Did I say he was?

You let me know next time you quote someone whose opinions you think might be of interest to DU readers, or who puts succinctly or cleverly an opinion under discussion.

Be sure to let me know, please. I want to be sure to follow you around saying "so what?"

You apparently have nothing to say. Please feel free to keep saying it.

[Mike Daniels]

88. deleted by poster

[dysfunctional press]

70. not necessarily true....

for instance- people die at the grand canyon fall & die often enough because they choose to go beyond barriers to get a better view/photo.

if somebody wants to put themselves in danger by ignoring warning signs and scaling multiple barricades- they can do so in a lot of seemingly safe locales.

[zonkers]

71. He would have gotten bit by a snake in the preserve or molested in the library....

Get real. And you are giving Amusement Parks too much credit....they are not some sort of calculated conspiracy to keep citizens from becoming restless, they are simply built and designed to generate money.

[LanternWaste]

75. I certainly hope you don't own or play...

"A narcotic keeps the masses entertained and ignorant..."

God forbid any family attempts to have a little bit of fun on a weekend. Better they should keep their eyes glued to current events 24/7. Anyway, how does one go about staying in the loop of what's "really going on" in a nature preserve that can't be done in an amusement park?

I sure hope you don't own or play and computer or console games, else "hypocrisy, thy name is Swilton"

[Mike Daniels]

87. WTF?

A narcotic to keep the masses entertained and ignorant.

Let's examine some other supposed "narcotics"...TV, music, concerts, theater, movies, fictional literature, playing football or any other organized sport, playing tag or any other non-organized athletic activity, going to the waterpark, playing in the neighborhood playground....

Let's just do away with all those things and more because heaven forbid that someone spend some time thinking about or doing something that you consider irrelevant and useless.

[Dervill Crow]

91. Nature preserves have embankments and libraries have mezzanines.

As the saying goes, some people are just accidents looking for a place to happen.

[Zachstar]

14. This is news? More like Darwin at work.

One thing you never do is approach something that has a TON of potential energy. Teen didn't care now earth does not have to care.

[superconnected]

15. I like the parks statement. They handled this well.

Sad for the family and the teen.

17 just sounds ridiculous to be calling him a boy in this article.

[Gormy Cuss]

16. It is odd to use the term boy for a 17 year old --youth is more typical.

I could speculate on the reason for the choice of words, but I won't.

[Hissyspit]

18. See #17.

[Gormy Cuss]

46. Thanks, Hissyspit. n/t

[Hissyspit]

17. AP Style. Anyone 17 and younger is 'boy' or 'girl.' 18 and over is 'man' or 'woman.'

Although when I was 17, I would have hated to be referred to as a boy. Teenager would have been o.k. to me.

[JeanGrey]

81. Depends on the state. In some of them you are criminally

an adult at 17.

[Irreverend IX]

21. Good job, Chuck.

[iverglas]

29. seriously

Isn't it time you found somewhere to post that is a little more suited to your vile disregard for human life?

There may have been little that could be done to prevent this incident. Teenagers are notoriously prone to taking risks and failing to understand consequences.

(On the other hand, amusement parks are notoriously prone to placing too little emphasis on their customers' well-being in their cost-benefit analyses. My father was the first person to appear in the medical literature as having suffered a subdural haematoma from G-force sheer -- thought at the time to be a shaken-baby injury -- on a roller coaster, in Ohio; there have been many, many since.)

But to make a joke of the death of a 17-year-old?

Vicious. Simply vicious.

[Bluebear]

37. And not the only "Darwin Award" reference in this thread. Vile, nt

[AlbertCat]

23. Boy killed at Six Flags Over Georgia By RHONDA COOK

Boy killed at Six Flags Over Georgia
By RHONDA COOK


Why would Rhonda do such a thing?????

[provis99]

30. and why were Rhonda and the teen fighting over Georgia?

[Politicalboi]

31. This reminds me

Of the tiger at the SF zoo last year. Stupid is as stupid does I guess. I feel more for the poor tiger than his victims. The signs should have been obeyed. It's like on TV commercials that say do not attemp to jump off a cliff or drive your car in water. Thanks for the warning. :sarcasm:

[junior college]

32. OMG This is the SF Zoo all over again

Six feet is not enough! Kids can climb over anything and the park should know this. I find it disgusting that so many people here who consider themselves "liberal" are blaming the victim and calling him stupid. He was a teenager!! We all did stupid things as teenagers and that is why the park should have known to provide a safer barrier. I hope the park gets sued into bankruptcy.

[alphafemale]

42. Oh...please. The park is not reponsible for this.

No way in hell.

[AngryOldDem]

44. The park fulfilled its responsibilty by posting visible signs warning of danger and to stay out.

It can't help the fact that some may choose to ignore said signs.

[kuratowa]

49. Say What?

Two six foot fences and warning signs is not enough? The park needs to put up concertina wire to protect people? I know I feel comfortable and at ease at amusement parks that look like prisons.

[TommyO]

50. Perhaps the dead kid's parents should be sued

for the danger he posed to people on the ride when he scaled *TWO* fences that were clearly marked and entered into a marked restricted area?

This kid *WAS* stupid, now he's dead and his family and witnesses to his death are going to live with that.

No lawsuits against the park are warranted.

[minnesota_liberal]

54. You just know the amusement park will be sued

I'd guess that they'll end up forking out at least $8 million.

[Codeine]

57. Climb over anything, huh?

If that's the case then no barrier is enough, is it? Maybe a moat, but then the stupid little shits might drown. Perhaps concrete, for that Occupied Territories ambiance? :eyes:

[BearSquirrel2]

65. 20 foot wouldn't have helped ...

Although I can't do it anymore, I remember scaling fences and height really isn't a factor. It's the same skill all the way up. Though I do remember being able to vault over a 6 footer in one motion (both hands and feet).

[DS1]

72. Yeah. They should totally have lines of woodchippers after the second fence

if you can get past them, you're obviously elite enough to work there

[LisaL]

73. The tiger got out of where she was supposed to be.

This boy apparently got into where he wasn't supposed to be. And you seriously can't see a difference?

[JeanGrey]

82. Oh Please, give me a break! This stuff is totally giving

me the shits. It was an AMUSEMENT park and there were signs all over; the kid climbed two fences! The kid is the only one at fault. Possibly we should assign a "bodyguard" to everyone.

:puke:

[appleannie1]

89. What do you propose they do? Put everyone in straight jackets to protect them

from themselves? You sound like a member of the jury that found the owner of a dog at fault because his neighbor climbed over a fence into the owner's yard, climbed into the dog kennel and was shooting a dog with a BB gun and the dog bit him. Their finding was the owner should have had the dog in a secure area. My finding would have been the neighbor was trespassing on private property, was being cruel to the dog and deserved to be bit.

[Charlie Brown]

33. according to this version, it was two teens who scaled the fences

http://www.11alive.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=117914&catid=40

the second guy apparently was unharmed. Although my first impression was stupidity, I have to wonder if peer pressure and youthful egos were behind this calamity (since it was a visiting group). Regardless, it's a huge tragedy, and very macabre that the teen was decapitated (according to the link).

[AngryOldDem]

47. From what I heard, the kid's hat flew off during the ride and he was trying to retrieve it.

Sad.

[Blue_Tires]

76. the latest update is the kids left the park and scaled the fence getting back in

[snooper2]

68. I heard they were with a church group

And the whole group left earlier in the day, and these two tried to get back in without paying, I.E. the fence by the Batman ride.....

[JeanGrey]

84. That's it! It was the the church's fault!! That's right, they were

supposed to be watching him!!! (I am really surprised I haven't read this) sarcasm off

[krispos42]

39. Ooch

How could anybody that knows not to play in traffic do something like this?

[hadrons]

40. I've done dumb & dangerous as a kid, but this ???? ... oh, boy

[alphafemale]

45. Well...It does appear that the rattlesnake in that first pick is de-fanged.

Still not something I'd do for kicks.

[undeterred]

51. Some of the comments here are a little harsh.

Seventeen year olds have no sense of their on mortality. They take huge risks, especially the boys. Amusement parks are full of teenagers. I wish the park had made it impossible for anyone to get close to the ride.

[Codeine]

58. Double fencing is more than reasonable.

There's no way to make it "impossible," short of herding the punters through glass tunnels.

[onenote]

78. 99.9 percent of the teenagers who go into that park manage to get out alive

Maybe its this teen, not the park, that screwed up.

[JeanGrey]

83. Not possible. Even a park employee was killed getting too

close to this ride about five years ago.

[minnesota_liberal]

52. Not killed by a roller coaster but by his own recklessness

It reminds me of the trio of young men who were attacked after taunting a tiger at the San Francisco zoo not long ago.

Reckless - some would say stupid - acts that were compounded by safety features that were not "idiot proof."

[carlyhippy]

61. Shame, a young life destroyed, senseless

He was old enough to know better, I feel bad for the parents, my prayers are with them, it's a shame.