FILE: Six Flags closed its X2 roller coaster, amid lawsuits alleging catastrophic brain damage, in Valencia, Calif.
FILE: Six Flags closed its X2 roller coaster, amid lawsuits alleging catastrophic brain damage, in Valencia, Calif.
Jeremy Thompson via Flickr CC 2.0
On a summer day in June 2022, Christopher Hawley visited Magic Mountain with his younger brother and cousin. But immediately after riding X2 — the famed roller coaster with two half loops that veer into “sheer drops” — he struggled to walk, held onto a railing and collapsed.
Doctors discovered extensive bleeding in his brain and performed emergency surgery, but Hawley died the following day at just 22 years old. The coroner attributed his death to head trauma from a park ride accident, according to a lawsuit filed by his family.
Hawley had recently graduated from San Diego State University with a degree in theater arts and hoped to pursue acting. He would be 27 now, his mother, Anne Hawley, told SFGATE.
For four years, Anne Hawley has wanted the roller coaster her son rode before his death to shut down. On Tuesday, Six Flags Magic Mountain announced X2 would never run again.
Anne told SFGATE that her first reaction was disbelief. She reread the announcement several times after seeing it Tuesday morning.
“I thought, ‘Wow, finally,’” Anne recalled. “I had tears in my eyes.”
Anne and her husband William first sued Magic Mountain and X2 trainmaker S&S Worldwide in 2023, alleging the forces generated by the roller coaster caused their son’s fatal injuries.
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FILE: Six Flags closed its X2 roller coaster, amid lawsuits alleging catastrophic brain damage, in Valencia, Calif.
FILE: Six Flags closed its X2 roller coaster, amid lawsuits alleging catastrophic brain damage, in Valencia, Calif.
Jeremy Thompson via Flickr CC 2.0
The parties reached a settlement in August, shortly before trial. Attorney Timothy Loranger told SFGATE the case has been settled but has not yet been dismissed, and there is no set date for its dismissal.
The settlement terms are confidential. Six Flags and S&S denied liability, and there has been no finding that X2 was defective or that either company caused Hawley’s death.
But for his mother, the ride continuing to operate during the years after Christopher’s death became intertwined with the family’s grief.
“For four years, Christopher died and we had been grieving the loss of Christopher, along with the ride that killed Christopher still running,” Anne said. “That has torn us apart.”
In a statement announcing the ride’s closure, Six Flags Magic Mountain President Brian Oerding said X2 had consistently passed “a multitude of safety tests” and that the park decided to retire it after seeing guest confidence affected.
“Ride safety is a cornerstone of our business, and when we see guest confidence affected, we take it seriously,” Oerding said in the announcement.
FILE: Six Flags closed its X2 roller coaster, amid lawsuits alleging catastrophic brain damage, in Valencia, Calif.
FILE: Six Flags closed its X2 roller coaster, amid lawsuits alleging catastrophic brain damage, in Valencia, Calif.
Jeremy Thompson via Flickr CC 2.0
FILE: Six Flags closed its X2 roller coaster, amid lawsuits alleging catastrophic brain damage, in Valencia, Calif.
FILE: Six Flags closed its X2 roller coaster, amid lawsuits alleging catastrophic brain damage, in Valencia, Calif.
Jeremy Thompson via Flickr CC 2.0
The coaster, whose independently rotating seats sent riders through drops and inversions at speeds approaching 80 mph, carried more than 16 million people after reopening as X2 in 2008, according to the park. Attorneys representing riders who say the coaster injured them have challenged whether those tests adequately accounted for the rotational and angular forces experienced on X2.
“The ride produces sufficient forces to cause subdural hematoma in passengers,” Loranger told SFGATE. “If you do the appropriate testing on the ride, then data becomes available that you can use to determine whether or not the ride can cause a brain injury like this.”
X2 remained in operation until July, when a series of riders reported serious brain injuries. Dordick Law Corporation filed three lawsuits in September on behalf of riders who allege they suffered catastrophic brain injuries after riding X2 in 2026. The firm says more than 100 additional riders alleging traumatic brain injuries of varying severity have retained it, with more lawsuits planned.
“The fact that the roller coaster is closed is a positive development because it means nobody else is going to be hurt,” Christopher Bulone, an attorney with Dordick representing the riders, told SFGATE. “But it also makes me angry because it’s finally an admission of what we all knew.”
Among Dordick’s clients is Naomi Greer-Wilkinson, 25, who was hospitalized after riding X2 on July 11. Her lawsuit says she suffered massive intracranial hemorrhaging and underwent multiple emergency brain surgeries. She remains in bed and ventilator-dependent, cannot speak or voluntarily move her limbs and is in a minimally conscious state, according to the complaint.
Naomi Greer-Wilkinson, following severe brain trauma allegedly suffered on X2 roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain.
Courtesy of Dordick Law Corporation
Bulone said he spent time with Greer-Wilkinson the day before the closure announcement. Her parents believe she retains some level of awareness.
“She’s not able to speak or gesture or do anything to communicate,” Bulone said.
Six days before Greer-Wilkinson rode X2, Pamela Guillen, 39, visited the park while celebrating her daughter’s birthday. Her lawsuit alleges she became confused and unstable after the ride, collapsed and was later diagnosed with a massive intracranial hemorrhage. She underwent multiple brain surgeries, including craniotomies. Bulone said Guillen continues to experience severe headaches, memory problems, confusion, balance issues and insomnia.
“The way she experiences everything is different, and the way now that her loved ones experience their relationships with her are different,” Bulone said.
Michael Wilk alleges he suffered brain bleeding after riding X2 in February. His complaint says he later underwent two craniotomies and continues to experience headaches, confusion, dizziness and memory loss. The longtime attorney alleges his cognitive impairment has left him unable to practice law.
At left, Pamela Guillen, prior to riding the X2 roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain; right, Pamela Guillen, following severe brain trauma allegedly suffered on X2 roller coasterat Six Flags Magic Mountain.
Courtesy of Dordick Law Corporation
Left, Michael Wilk, prior to riding the X2 roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain; right, Michael Wilk, following severe brain trauma allegedly suffered on X2 roll coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain.
Courtesy of Dordick Law Corporation
Dordick has said all the X2 cases it accepted involve riders injured within the past two years who suffered a brain injury and received medical treatment.
“It could be death. It could be coma. It could be something that strangers would never notice,” Bulone said. “But to live with a brain injury that has symptoms that last forever is always serious.”
Six Flags has not admitted that X2 caused the riders’ injuries.
But according to an August CNN investigation, the company has faced more than a dozen reports of serious injuries and hospitalizations tied to the rollercoaster for nearly two decades. CNN also found that after Hawley’s death, state officials ordered X2 shut down for an inspection before allowing it to reopen within days based on safety and testing data provided by Six Flags.
Six Flags declined to answer CNN’s questions about the injuries but the company has disputed in court that X2’s forces could cause traumatic brain injuries.
FILE: Six Flags closed its X2 roller coaster, amid lawsuits alleging catastrophic brain damage, in Valencia, Calif.
FILE: Six Flags closed its X2 roller coaster, amid lawsuits alleging catastrophic brain damage, in Valencia, Calif.
Jeremy Thompson via Flickr CC 2.0
Anne Hawley said she thought she would finally get an apology when X2 closed but the announcement didn’t include any history of the inspection or lawsuits.
“My thought was the ride killed him,” Anne Hawley said. “Magic Mountain will apologize, offer condolences. They’ll say something. … They have said nothing.”
Knowing X2 will never run again offers something she hopes other families now pursuing their own cases can share.
“My hope is that they will find a little bit of peace and comfort knowing that that machine is finally shut down,” Anne said.