Current:Home > ScamsA roller coaster was shut down after a crack was found in a support beam. A customer says he spotted it. -AssetVision
A roller coaster was shut down after a crack was found in a support beam. A customer says he spotted it.
Will Sage Astor View
Date:2025-04-10 04:49:03
An amusement park in Charlotte, North Carolina, closed one of its roller coasters Friday after a crack was found on a support beam.
Carowinds shut down Fury 325, which the park's website advertises as the "tallest, fastest, longest giga coaster in North America" that crosses into both North Carolina and South Carolina.
Video of the ride showed the crack in the beam as cars packed with riders whizzed by.
Park patron Jeremy Wagner told CBS Charlotte, N.C. affiliate WBTV he was the one who spotted the crack and took the video.
He said he was waiting for his kids to finish one last ride on the coaster when, "I look up and I see a light come through the pole."
When the next car came by, he pulled out his phone and videoed it.
Wagner told WBTV what he saw when he played it back sent a shock through his chest.
"When the car came by," he said, "I saw (the beam) move."
Posted by Jeremy Wagner on Friday, June 30, 2023
(Credit: Jeremy Wagner via Storyful)
He told The New York Times that as he was shooting the video, "My hands were shaking because I knew how quick this could be catastrophic."
Wagner told WBTV he immediately showed the video to park security to have them shut the ride but didn't get a clear answer on whether park officials would. But Wagner eventually called the fire department and learned that his video did indeed prompt the shutdown of the Fury.
"My heart was like relieved because I was just afraid ... are they gonna do the right thing? I just didn't want to see something bad happen," he remarked to WBTV.
"It takes one time, just one time" for tragedy to strike, he said.
Tiffany Collins Newton told CBS News that on June 24, she took a photo that appeared to show "the beginnings of the crack" on the roller coaster. She said she did not notice the crack until after the ride was closed on Friday and she zoomed in on her recent photos.
The park said in a statement that it shut the ride "after park personnel became aware of a crack at the top of a steel support pillar. The park's maintenance team is conducting a thorough inspection and the ride will remain closed until repairs have been completed. Safety is our top priority and we appreciate the patience and understanding of our valued guests during this process.
"As part of our comprehensive safety protocols," the statement continued, "all rides, including Fury 325, undergo daily inspections to ensure their proper functioning and structural integrity."
Fury 325 first opened to the public in 2015 and cost approximately $30 million to build, according to news reports.
Carowinds didn't say how long repairs would take. The rest of the park will remain open.
State officials said they were going to inspect the ride Monday.
veryGood! (38)
Related
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- Visual artists fight back against AI companies for repurposing their work
- Amur tiger dies in tragic accident at Colorado zoo
- Maine woman pleads guilty in 14-month-old son’s fentanyl death
- South Korea's acting president moves to reassure allies, calm markets after Yoon impeachment
- Arrest made in attempted break-in at home of UFC president Dana White
- Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow returns to practice as team prepares for Browns
- Judge rejects key defense for former Trump adviser Peter Navarro as trial is set for Tuesday
- Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people
- Tropical Storm Idalia descends on North Carolina after pounding Florida, Georgia and South Carolina
Ranking
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- Body of 12-year-old boy with gunshot wound found in Philadelphia dumpster
- An Air Force crew captured video of rare St. Elmo's fire when they evacuated ahead of Idalia. What is this phenomenon?
- Watch thousands of octopus moms use underwater 'hot tubs' to protect their nests
- Tree trimmer dead after getting caught in wood chipper at Florida town hall
- 'Happiest day of my life': Michigan man wins $100k from state lottery
- Howie Mandell Reacts to Criticism Over His Comment About Sofía Vergara's Relationship Status
- Whatever happened to fly-in medical missions that got kayoed by the pandemic?
Recommendation
B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
The six teams that could break through and make their first College Football Playoff
Pennsylvania’s Senate returns for an unusual August session and a budget stalemate
6-foot beach umbrella impales woman's leg in Alabama
Nevada attorney general revives 2020 fake electors case
Giuliani sanctioned by judge in defamation case brought by 2 Georgia election workers
'Awful situation': 10-year-old girl stabs man attacking her mom in Houston, police say
Ugandan man, 20, faces possible death penalty under draconian anti-gay law