COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Hassan Kariem’s 13-year-old niece sat next to him on the Goliath roller coaster as the tragedy unfolded at Six Flags Over Georgia, according to their family.
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The girl’s father and Kariem’s brother-in-law said they were both excited to ride Goliath for her 13th birthday.
“And he said it was one of his favorite races and he was excited to be there,” Joshua Nelson said. Ashlyn Webb from Channel 2.
Kariem and his niece, Navi, boarded the Goliath side by side. But moments later, something went horribly wrong.
“She said he passed out or passed out, her words were ‘he passed out’ … and she said he got back up and his, his latch, I guess, broke or came and came loose and he fell,” Nelson said.
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Navi called her father in tears, struggling to explain what she had seen.
“And at this point I think that can’t be right,” his father said.
They later learned that Kariem did not survive.
Now, Nelson continues to think about the last conversation he says his daughter had with her uncle. Just before the ride, he says Kariem told his niece how fun the ride would be before asking her to hold her sunglasses.
“That’s just kind of what I’m holding on to, hoping that’s the last thing he remembers,” Nelson said. “I hope he didn’t feel any pain. And the last thing he remembers is this moment of happiness.”
But with this hope comes questions.
“A big part of me believes, you know, it was a freak accident, but the other part of me, you know, wonders could this have been avoided?” Nelson told Webb.
Back home, Nelson has a little souvenir of Kariem’s love: a Harry Potter-themed cake topper with Navi’s face on it. Kariem made it himself for his birthday party the day before he died.
“That’s exactly who he always was. He always showed up and he had a pure heart. He was always giving,” Nelson said of his brother-in-law.
Nelson said her daughter was evacuated by paramedics at the scene. He wants answers and accountability to ensure another family doesn’t experience the same heartbreak.
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