How a day of fun and thrill-seeking turned into a horrifying tragedy at Six Flags

On a warm Columbus Day afternoon, with many area schools closed for Fall Break, the winding midways of Six Flags Over Georgia must have made a wooded stretch about 10 miles west of downtown Atlanta feel both electric and nostalgic.

Carousel music mixed with the thunderous roar of roller coaster carts exploding through dizzying loops and heart-stopping drops. The piercing screams and cheers of thrill seekers clashed with blaring music and barkers calling crowds to their games. The sweet, woody scent of Georgia pines blended with the wafting aroma of sizzling hot dogs and hamburgers.

Under a skyline of soaring steel structures, the Goliath roller coaster stands as one of the Southeast's most popular attractions. The 210-second ride reaches a top speed of 70 miles an hour and an elevation of 200 feet along 4,480 feet of track, featuring "razor-sharp turns" and "colossal hills,"according to the park. The "hypercoaster," as Six Flags describes it, celebrated "20 years of airtime" last June and "challenges even the bravest of the brave."

On Monday, Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, a 42-year-old Atlanta resident and "cherished member" of Wesley International Academy, an Atlanta public charter school, died after falling from the coaster, according to police. Several other park-goers were injured.

Kariem was Wesley International Academy's IT manager, a technology teacher and robotics coach, the school said.

A fun-filled, early autumn holiday turned into successive moments of unforgettable horror. Park-goers watched as Kariem was ejected from the ride, striking other patrons as he plunged onto the roof of a haunted house attraction, one witness told CNN affiliate WXIA.

A lone, empty roller coaster seat

It was shortly before 4 p.m.

"Someone has fallen off of the Goliath ride," a 911 dispatcher is heard saying, according to WSB Radio. "Come to the park."

Part of the horrifying incident, as Kariem struck the cart, was recorded on the coaster camera that captures images for riders, another witness told the station. The images have been taken down.

Kariem struck the cart three times, a couple who were on the ride told CNN affiliate WXIA.

"We were having a great time and to just screaming 'Oh my God, what is happening?' " the woman said. Before the ride, she said, workers checked the safety harnesses.

Another witness described Kariem, at one point, landing on a girl two rows in front of her.

CiCi Nelson was in line to ride the Goliath coaster when a cart pulled up. One seat was empty. Other riders were in hysterics. She recalled one man "freaking out, saying someone fell off." He urged park staff to call for help.

The safety bar over the empty seat appeared loose, Nelson said. A girl on the cart, covered in blood, appeared to be injured, she added.

"My stomach just dropped and I was terrified," Nelson told CNN.

What caused him to fall remains unclear. Investigators were examining the circumstances surrounding the incident, according to the Cobb County Police Department's Major Crimes Unit.

Emergency personnel rushed to the loading station as Nelson and others were asked to leave the area.

Moving away, Nelson said, she could see riders in another cart stuck on the steel track high above the park. If not for an issue calling up a ride pass on her phone, she recalled, she would have been on the cart with the now empty seat.

"If it wasn't for that one extra minute my group had to wait for my flash app to show the ride attendant my QR code, we would've been on there," Nelson said.

One of those trapped on Goliath's 200-foot incline was Ben Edwards, who was visiting from Canada. Above Atlanta's suburbs, Edwards and others were stuck for at least an hour.

"Obviously, where the chaos was, that was the priority, and evacuating everybody else," he told WANF TV.

Below, Edwards could see park staff and paramedics swarming the ride's entrance.

"We realized that there was something bad that happened," he said. "Very tragic. The first thing you think about is the people you're on the ride with."

Rahim Hakmati, a Six Flags Over Georgia season ticket holder, arrived at the park as large groups of people were leaving. A person had fallen off Goliath, he heard someone say. As he approached the ride, security directed people away.

The night before, Hakmati told CNN, he rode Goliath and "didn't notice anything unusual or experience any problems." Now he and others were being asked to leave the park.

On the coaster's steep incline, the stranded riders were guided down a stairway along tracks by park staff around 5 p.m., aerial video from WXIA showed.

Kariem was found unresponsive and not breathing when police arrived.

His "presence and impact will be deeply missed by our students, staff, and all those whose lives he touched," the school district said. "Atlanta Public Schools extends its deepest condolences to the family, friends, and loved ones of Mr. Kariem."

He was with the district for over 12 years, a spokesperson said.

"Our thoughts are with everyone mourning his loss during this difficult time," the statement said.

At least 10 roller coasters across six other Six Flags in the US and Canada have been temporarily closed "out of an abundance of caution," a Six Flags spokesperson said.

"We are deeply saddened by the guest incident at our park today," Six Flags Over Georgia said in a statement. "Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with the guest's family, friends, and loved ones."

The manufacturer of the roller coaster, Bolliger & Mabillard, described Monday's incident as "tragic" and said the company is "actively investigating" it. The company declined further comment until it has "a better understanding of what transpired."

Monday's tragedy occurred nearly two weeks after Six Flags Magic Mountain in California announced it would permanently close its world-famous ride X2, following a CNN investigation that documented reports of serious injuries and deaths associated with the ride.

"I cannot imagine the horror the patrons and employees witnessed today, and my heart aches for the family who lost a loved one," Cobb County Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said.

"We are all grappling with how something so devastating could happen at a place that has given generations of families such happy memories."

Caleb Sedam and Brandon Casper, Indianapolis residents who were visiting Atlanta, spent Monday at the park with friends. They told WXIA the fatal accident occurred one cart ahead of them. They were stuck on the coaster for about an hour.

"When you go to a park, you have this natural presumption that you're there for a good time and that you're going to be safe," Sedam said Tuesday.

At the entrance to the coaster, a woman cried. She later told them she witnessed the fatal fall.

"It could have been anybody. It could have been us," Casper said.