ATLANTA, GA — A terrifying cell phone video recorded by the ten-year-old child of Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem has sent shockwaves across the nation today, providing a horrific, frame-by-frame account of the moments leading up to the 42-year-old father’s death on the Goliath hypercoaster at Six Flags Over Georgia.

The newly surfaced footage, which was inadvertently captured while Kariem’s child recorded their family’s thrill ride, appears to confirm the absolute worst fears of investigators and theme park visitors alike: a catastrophic mechanical or locking mechanism anomaly occurred on the safety lap bar just as the train crested its notorious 200-foot drop at speeds exceeding 112 km/h (70 mph).

Even more heartbreaking than the technical failure captured on camera are the terrifying final seconds of the recording. In his absolute last breath, realizing the restraint had failed and that he was being thrown into the abyss, Hassan turned toward his child and screamed five haunting final words that are now ringing across social media:

“HOLD ON, I LOVE YOU!”

Seconds later, the beloved educator, IT professional, and double-cancer survivor was thrown from his seat, plummeting to his death in front of his traumatized family and hundreds of horrified onlookers.

A TRAGIC TIMELINE: FROM A DAY OF CELEBRATION TO AN UNIMAGINABLE NIGHTMARE

What was supposed to be a joyous holiday family outing quickly turned into a scene of pure horror. Hassan Kariem, a respected 42-year-old Atlanta educator and technology analyst known by friends and colleagues as a pillar of strength and generosity, had arrived at Six Flags Over Georgia alongside his wife and two young children.

To those who knew Hassan, his presence at the park that afternoon was a testament to his unbreakable spirit. Friends reveal that Hassan had fought through and survived two separate battles with cancer in recent years. Remarkably, just three weeks prior to the Six Flags trip, Hassan and his son had narrowly escaped a sudden car fire unharmed. Having overcome health crises and life-threatening emergencies, Hassan viewed every weekend with his wife and children as a sacred blessing.

According to witnesses queued up in line, the family was all smiles as they boarded Goliath, the 20-story steel hypercoaster manufactured by Switzerland-based Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M). Long considered the crown jewel of Six Flags Over Georgia since its debut in 2006, the ride is celebrated for its dramatic airtime hills, intense g-forces, and steep drops.

Hassan sat alongside his ten-year-old child in one of the middle trains. As the coaster was dispatched from the station and began its long, mechanical climb up the 200-foot lift hill, the young child pulled out a cell phone to capture the thrilling experience—a common practice among parkgoers, despite safety regulations advising against loose items.

Little did anyone know that the phone’s camera would document a fatal disaster.

THE LEAKED FOOTAGE: FRAME-BY-FRAME BREAKDOWN OF THE RESTRAINT ANOMALY

The video clip, which leaked online early this morning and quickly spread across Reddit, X, and TikTok before several platforms scrambled to pull down the graphic portions, lasts approximately 45 seconds.

1. The Lift Hill and The Initial Warning Signs

The recording begins with upbeat laughter and excited screams as the train ascends the lift hill. Hassan can be seen sitting on the left side of the row, smiling reassuringly at his child. The heavy B&M “clamshell” lap bar—a T-bar restraint designed to secure riders at the hips—is pulled down over his lap.

However, eagle-eyed viewers and safety analysts who reviewed the leaked footage noted a subtle anomaly around the 18-second mark. As the train reaches the apex of the 200-foot drop, Hassan appears to pull slightly on the harness, looking down with a sudden expression of confusion and concern.

2. The 112 KM/H Drop and Mechanical Failure

As the coaster plunges down the 70-degree drop, accelerating rapidly toward its top speed of 112 km/h, intense negative G-forces (“airtime”) lift riders slightly out of their seats.

At second 27, disaster strikes. The footage clearly shows the heavy yellow lap bar suddenly shifting upward with a violent jerk, disengaging from its locked position. Unlike standard shoulder harnesses, hypercoasters rely entirely on lap restraints to keep riders pinned into deep bucket seats during high-speed weightlessness.

With the lap bar slipping upward, Hassan is instantly lifted out of the bucket seat by the sheer momentum and velocity of the train.

3. The Haunting Last Words

Realizing in a split second that he is slipping out of the vehicle with no way to brace himself, Hassan does not scramble for his own safety. Instead, his immediate, instinctive reaction is directed entirely at his child sitting right next to him.

With total desperation etched across his face as the wind howls past the camera, Hassan reaches out with one hand to check his child’s harness and screams his final five words over the roaring wind:

“HOLD ON, I LOVE YOU!”

An instant later, as the train hits the bottom of the drop and transitions into a sharp, high-G bank, Hassan is catapulted entirely out of the coaster train. The camera jolts violently, capturing erratic footage of the sky and track before cutting off amid deafening shrieks of terror from surrounding passengers.

COMMUNITY IN MOURNING: A HEROIC FATHER REMEMBERED

The tragedy has left the local Atlanta community and the nation completely paralyzed with grief. Hassan Kariem was far more than just a park visitor; he was a dedicated educator, a brilliant IT professional, and a devoted family man who spent his life lifting others up.

“Hassan was the definition of resilience,” said a longtime family friend during a candlelight vigil outside the family’s community center. “He survived cancer twice. He pulled his family out of a burning vehicle just weeks ago. He was a man who lived every single day for his wife and his two kids. To know that his very last breath on this earth was spent telling his child he loved them… that is who Hassan was down to his core. A hero.”

Tributes have poured in from former students, colleagues, and community leaders, all describing Hassan as a selfless mentor who always put family first.

“He fought through every health obstacle life threw at him, only to be taken away in a split-second tragedy at a place meant for joy,” shared a colleague in an emotional social media post. “The bravery he showed in those last seconds, thinking only of his child’s safety, will never be forgotten.”

NATIONWIDE REPERCUSSIONS: SIX FLAGS PARALYZED AND COASTERS GROUNDED

The release of the footage has turned an already catastrophic accident into a full-blown safety crisis for the global amusement park industry.

In an unprecedented emergency move, Six Flags Entertainment Corporation—working in tandem with state regulators and manufacturing firm Bolliger & Mabillard—ordered the immediate suspension and grounding of at least 9 similar hypercoasters across six different states and Canada.

Affected Rides Grounded for Emergency Inspections:

• Goliath — Six Flags Over Georgia (Austell, GA)

• Nitro — Six Flags Great Adventure (Jackson, NJ)

• Apollo’s Chariot — Busch Gardens Williamsburg (Williamsburg, VA)

• Raging Bull — Six Flags Great America (Gurnee, IL)

• Behemoth — Canada’s Wonderland (Vaughan, Ontario)

• And several other B&M hypercoasters sharing identical restraint architecture.

Engineering teams and federal investigators are currently conducting exhaustive ultrasonic testing, hydraulic line checks, and mechanical teardowns of the locking ratchets on all grounded coasters to determine whether a design flaw, fatigue failure, or operator error permitted the restraint to disengage at high speeds.

INVESTIGATION INTENSIFIES: COBB COUNTY POLICE & STATE AUTHORITIES STEP IN

The Cobb County Police Department, along with the Georgia Office of Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner (the governing body responsible for state amusement ride safety), officially seized the phone footage earlier today as key evidence in their ongoing criminal and civil investigation.

Investigators are focusing heavily on three core possibilities:

1. Restraint Latch Mechanism Failure: Whether the dual hydraulic cylinders or mechanical locking teeth on the B&M lap bar suffered a sudden physical failure under extreme negative G-forces.

2. Operator Verification Error: Whether ride operators at the dispatch station properly verified that Hassan’s lap bar was locked down into the required minimum notch before releasing the train.

3. Physical Fit or Position Displacement: Whether body geometry or seat positioning played a role in preventing the locking mechanism from engaging fully prior to dispatch.

A spokesperson for Six Flags issued a brief statement late afternoon:

“We are heart-broken by the tragic loss of Hassan Kariem, and our deepest condolences and prayers remain with his wife, children, and loved ones during this unimaginably painful time. We are fully cooperating with state safety inspectors, law enforcement, and the ride manufacturer to determine exactly how this failure occurred. Safety remains our highest priority, and the ride will remain closed indefinitely.”

CRITICS AND PUBLIC OUTRAGE: CALLS FOR INDUSTRY-WIDE OVERHAUL

The chilling video has sparked fierce debate on social media and among theme park safety advocates regarding safety redundancy systems on hypercoasters.

Unlike many modern roller coasters that feature secondary safety belts (seatbelts that clip from the seat cushion directly into the lap bar as a backup locking mechanism), many older-generation B&M hypercoasters rely solely on the primary hydraulic/ratchet lap bar restraint.

Safety experts are now demanding that federal regulations step in to mandate redundant secondary seatbelts on every high-speed roller coaster operating in North America.

“When you are sending human beings down a 200-foot drop at 112 km/h, relying on a single mechanical locking point without a secondary belt safety buckle is an unacceptable risk,” stated a prominent consumer safety advocate. “If this video proves anything, it’s that when a primary lap bar fails at top speed, the passenger has zero chance of survival. This family deserves answers, and the industry needs immediate reform.”

A FAMILY LEFT BEHIND

As state officials continue their forensic analysis of the Goliath train and the fateful footage, a grieving family is left to process a loss that words can barely capture.

A GoFundMe campaign launched by family friends to support Hassan’s widow and two young children with grief counseling, legal representation, and living expenses has already raised hundreds of thousands of dollars within hours of going live—a stark reflection of the profound sorrow felt across the country.

The 5 words captured on that viral, heartbreaking recording—“Hold on, I love you!”—will forever echo as a devastating monument to a father’s ultimate love in his final, heroic moments.

This is a developing story. Updates will follow as Cobb County authorities and state inspectors release their formal technical reports.