Six Flags Permanently Retires X2 After Injury Reports

Six Flags has permanently retired X2, the longtime roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain in California, after the ride had been closed for weeks and reports of serious rider injuries drew legal scrutiny. Park President Brian Oerding announced the decision on September 29, saying the coaster had passed safety tests but that the company believed retirement was the right course because guest confidence had been affected. The ride was temporarily closed in July after two women suffered brain injuries six days apart following rides on X2, according to reporting cited in the supplied accounts. The injuries were reported in the same month, and the coaster was shut down after the second incident. The accounts do not establish that X2 caused either injury, and no findings linking the ride’s operation to the cases were provided. Attorneys representing plaintiffs say their firm has been retained by more than 100 people who claim to have suffered brain injuries after riding X2 in the past two years. That figure is the attorneys’ account of claimed clients, not an independently verified count of injuries.