California Coaster Investigated For Multiple Life-Threatening Injuries
What’s a great way to have some family fun during the dog days of summer? Amusement parks. Every year, families travel to popular destinations to experience the thrills of amusement rides because it’s a great way to entertain people of all ages.
But not everyone has a day of fun-filled adrenaline seeking excitement — accidents can happen at any moment. While theme park rides are generally fairly safe, from 1994 to 2004, there were forty deaths total (about 4 per year on average).
Now in 2026, we’d expect higher safety standards given how technology has advanced since 2004. But currently, there’s a coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain that’s under an OSHA investigation after it left four people dead, in a coma, or with permanent injury.
The Brain Injuries Sustained On X2 By Riders
X2 is making headlines now, but the first settled lawsuit tracks back to 2010 when a young 28 year old woman, Hilda Farias, passed away after being injured on the coaster. At the time, her death was suggested to be a mix of comorbid conditions like a brain abnormality.
Then in 2022, a 22 year old man, Christopher Hawley, collapsed and passed away after exiting the X2 ride. His family was preparing for trial, but ultimately settled with Six Flags recently. However, the injuries don’t stop there.
In July 2026, two women suffered traumatic brain injuries within days of each other. Pamela Guillen, a 40 year old woman, lost consciousness after riding. After doctors removed a piece of her skull and the brain swelling decreased, Guillen awoke 2 weeks later with no memory.
As Guillen lay in the hospital still in a coma, six days later Naomi Greer-Wilkinson would suffer a similar fate riding X2. However, Greer-Wilkinson has yet to awake from her coma as of the end of August 2026.
What’s Happening That Causes Severe Injury To Riders?
As humans, our heads are very delicate. The skull serves as protection for the brain, however, when speed and velocity are introduced, severe injury can occur. The brain, propelled by the force of the high-speed, can shake or slam into the skull.
This can cause a diffuse axonal injury, where the brain connections can rip or rupture, leaving individuals with lifelong struggles and disabilities if they awake from their coma. In fact, the worst cases of diffuse axonal injury will leave people in a permanent vegetative state. This damage typically occurs in high-speed car accidents. In fact, car crashes are the most common personal injury lawsuit because of the sheer damage and bodily pain one wreck can cause.
X2 is rated for 80 miles an hour and all of the injured riders struck their heads during the rapid movement of the ride. Pamela Guillen, the only one to recover, said “You go in as yourself, and then when you come back, you're in a medical emergency. Like I still can’t wrap my head around that.” She’s the only rider with the ability to speak on her experience.
Why Did The High-Speed Coaster Remain Open After Injury?
The parents of Naomi Greer-Wilkinson, the rider who remains in a coma, believe that their daughter shouldn’t have had the opportunity to ride X2 less than a week after Guillen’s accident. Although the roller coaster is now closed until further notice pending an investigation, the question is “How did X2 remain open following the first incident in 2026?”
Once that is determined, the court will decide if the amusement park could be considered negligent or responsible for the 2026 injuries. Farias and Hawley’s families settled out of court for an unknown sum, which helped keep the fatalities out of the national news cycle. Since the question of negligence was not brought in front of a judge, but rather settled out of court, Guillen and Greer-Wilkinson’s family will be the first to receive judgement (unless both parties decide to settle in the years to come).
If you’ve suffered an injury due to someone else’s negligence, talk to the legal professionals at Hickey & Hull Law Offices. We’ll handle the legal work while you focus on healing from this terrible incident. Give us a call today at (479) 434-2414 to schedule a consultation!