Six Flags Permanently Closes Rollercoaster After 100+ Riders Claim Brain Injuries: Report

VALENCIA, CA — Six Flags Magic Mountain is permanently closing X2 after attorneys said more than 100 people have claimed they suffered brain injuries on the roller coaster in the past two years.

"After almost 20 years, we have decided to permanently retire X2," Magic Mountain President Brian Oerding announced Tuesday.

Six Flags said more than 16 million guests have ridden X2 since 2008, and Oerding acknowledged the attraction's devoted following among roller coaster enthusiasts.

Oerding said X2 "consistently passed a multitude of safety tests," but the park decided to close it because of concerns about guest confidence.

The permanent closure comes after X2 had been shut down since July, following two reported cases of riders suffering serious brain injuries within six days of each other, CNN reported.

One woman suffered a severe subdural hematoma and brain compression after riding the coaster that month. Another lost consciousness after riding it and also underwent emergency brain surgery, according to CNN. She remained in a coma for weeks and still can't speak or breathe on her own, according to her parents.

CNN reported last week that attorneys pursuing claims involving the ride said more than 100 people had come forward claiming brain injuries after riding X2 in the last two years.

A CNN investigation published last month documented more than a dozen reports of serious injuries and hospitalizations associated with X2 over more than a decade, including two deaths.

A separate lawsuit involving an alleged X2 injury is scheduled for trial Aug. 16, 2027, in which a woman claims she suffered a traumatic brain injury and other medical complications while riding X2 in February 2020.

Magic Mountain and Six Flags were dismissed as defendants in that case in 2024. The lawsuit is continuing against S&S Worldwide Inc., which manufactured and designed X2's roller coaster vehicles, after a state appeals court reinstated the company as a defendant in February.

Magic Mountain and S&S Worldwide also previously settled with the parents of Christopher Hawley, a 22-year-old San Diego State University graduate who died in June 2022 after riding X2.

Six Flags has said it does not comment on pending litigation.

City News Service contributed to this report.