Carowinds amusement park in Charlotte, North Carolina, has closed its Fury 325 roller coaster until further notice after a video of a crack in the ride has gone viral.
Video of the coaster in motion, shared by outlets including the Associated Press and The New York Times, shows the ride whizzing around a bend on its track, with the crack clearly visible in one of the track’s support pillars. As the cars come around the track, the crack can be seen separating briefly.
In a statement to PEOPLE, Carowinds’ Director of Communications Courtney Weber said the park closed on Friday “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,” Weber added. “Safety is our top priority and we appreciate the patience and understanding of our valued guests during this process.”
Weber concluded, “As part of our comprehensive safety protocols, all rides, including Fury 325, undergo daily inspections to ensure their proper functioning and structural integrity.”
A North Carolina amusement park closed one of its roller coasters Friday after a crack was found on a support beam.
According to news reports, Carowinds shut down its Fury 325 ride. The park claims it’s the “tallest, fastest, longest giga coaster in North America.” pic.twitter.com/DNWTdxKGQm
— The Associated Press (@AP) July 3, 2023
The now-viral video footage was taken by Jeremy Wagner, who was at the park on Friday with his family, which included his daughter, 14, son, 13, and niece, 12, as well as his son’s 13-year-old friend.
He told The Washington Post that the children rode the Fury 325 several times throughout the day, but it wasn’t until Wagner returned to the park after getting his vehicle from the parking lot to pick up the kids that he noticed the crack in the ride’s pillar.
“I was like, ‘Y’all need to shut this ride down. That’s bad news,’ ” he recalled to the Post of what he told a Carowinds employee — whom Wagner claimed had a “lack of urgency,” leading Wagner to flag other employees, one of whom asked him to send her video of the crack.
“The biggest thing for me, there was no sense of urgency,” Wagner said.
According to Wagner, the ride “could have come unhinged and just went like a steamroller through the parking lot, plowing over pedestrians and cars and anything in its path.”
But once the ride is repaired, Wagner said he will let his children ride and told the Post, “It might even be better, safer than it was before.”
Carowinds recently celebrated its 50th anniversary, having opened to about 6,000 patrons on March 31, 1973, with a single roller coaster: the Carolina Goldrusher.
The park refers to the Fury 325 as the “tallest, fastest, longest giga coaster in North America,” in a description on its official website.
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