- Video shows rafts stacking up during the Raging River ride at Six Flags Over Texas
- Riders were forced to jump from the rafts and swim to safety
A video posted online shows the dramatic moment a family ride at a Texas theme park appeared to malfunction.
The video, posted to TikTok on Sunday, shows four rafts stacked during the Raging River ride at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington.
Within moments, another raft crashes onto the scene, prompting terrified riders to try to climb back onto the pier to safety.
As a park employee desperately tries to hold on to one of the rafts, it is pulled away, leaving the riders no choice but to fall into the water in an attempt to return to the pier.
In one heartbreaking moment, a young boy entering the river struggles to swim to safety and is pulled against the rushing water by another man, as someone is heard shouting ‘get the child’.
Video posted online shows the Raging River ride at Six Flags Over Texas apparently malfunctioning
Riders were forced to jump from their rafts and swim to safety
The child and two adults then had to climb onto the pier wearing soaking wet clothes, while the other rafts sailed back in the other direction.
Once they were safely back on the dock, an employee was seen running out with flotation equipment.
It is unclear what may have caused the pile-up, but some viewers claimed that it is not unusual for the ride to malfunction in this way.
“That happened to us on the same ride,” user Megan Burnett commented. “We sat there while they drained the water, and we had to walk out.”
Another user wrote that the Roaring River ride is “known for this, if you’re from there.” [Dallas-Fort Worth] You know,” while a third claimed the ride is “a death trap once it turns over,” adding that he’s “not going to deal with this.”
The Roaring River ride features rafts that can accommodate up to 12 family members, and will leave guests ‘soaked’
The Roaring River ride features rafts that can accommodate up to 12 family members and will leave guests “soaked.”
‘Put on your vests and step into this wobbly whitewater raft for a (playful) treacherous trip across the river,’ the Six Flags Over Texas website reads.
‘Do not be surprised if your sailing ship is overtaken by raging waves of water.’
On the same amusement park ride in Iowa, an 11-year-old boy and his older brother were killed when their raft capsized and trapped them underwater in July 2021.
The family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Adventureland water park, claiming it is responsible for the young boy’s death.
In Australia, four adults were also killed on a similar ride when the conveyor belt malfunctioned, causing the six-person raft to overturn.
It then crushed and drowned two men, aged 38 and 35, and two women, aged 42 and 32.