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Roller coaster had noticeable crack for hours, eyewitness says

A visitor to the Carowinds amusement park noticed a crack on a beam supporting the longest steel roller coaster in the U.S.
Posted at 9:46 AM, Jul 05, 2023

Jeremy Wagner, the man who discovered the crack in a roller coaster at Carowinds Amusement Park in North Carolina, told Scripps News that the ride had a crack in it for at least seven hours. 

"I was beside myself; I could not understand why there was no sense of urgency at the park," he told Scripps News' "Morning Rush" on Wednesday. 

Wagner noticed the crack on the Fury 325 ride. The amusement park calls it the country's longest steel roller coaster, going 1.25 miles. It features an 81-degree drop and reaches a speed of 95 mph.

It also goes across the North Carolina-South Carolina border.

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Video of the incident has since gone viral and prompted a number of questions about safety procedures at the park. 

"I'm hopeful the inspectors will see that it is fixed properly," Wagner said. "We had been at the park since 11:45 in the morning, and I took this video at 6:45, so who knows how many rides had happened before that."

The ride was later shut down for inspections. 

Despite the recent incident, Wagner said he plans to return to Carowinds. 

"I'm a season pass holder and we have plans to go back next week," he said.