Riders stuck upside down for 10 minutes on ‘North America's tallest, longest and fastest tilt coaster' on opening day
A malfunctioning roller coaster dubbed 'Siren's Curse' left riders stranded upside down for nearly 10 minutes during its grand debut in Ohio.
The coaster, which features a 160-foot lift hill, 2,966 feet of track and hits speeds of 58 mph over a two-minute ride, hit a snag when a power outage brought it to a screeching halt Saturday on its first day in operation, the Akron Beacon Journal reported.
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'The coaster's safety system performed as designed, the ride was restarted, and guests continued their ride,' Cedar Point spokesman Tony Clark told the outlet. 'Siren's Curse reopened shortly after and all guests exited the ride safely.'
Footage and images of the mishap show parkgoers on the ground glancing up at the suspended roller coaster enthusiast during the malfunction.
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Park officials said the coaster riders did not have to be evacuated from their seats, with the ride resuming after about 10 minutes — although the ride was shut down from 8 p.m. to about 9:45 p.m.
The Siren's Curse coaster opened on Saturday at Ohio's Cedar Point park — and soon had a mishap.
Craig Webb / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The debut of the Siren's Curse coaster at Cedar Point park in Ohio was anxiously anticipated by thrill seekers.
Craig Webb / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Clark told the Journal that the outage occurred after a motorist slammed into a nearby utility pole, which cut power to the coaster in mid-ride.
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Cedar Point has been touting the roller coaster's debut for weeks, calling it 'North America's tallest, longest and fastest tilt coaster' on the park website.
The park last made headlines in 2021 when an object flew out of the 420-foot tall Top Thrill Dragster coaster and struck a woman on the ground, shutting the park down for the season.
In 2022, an investigator's report cleared the park of wrongdoing in the incident.
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