Hᴀssan Jihad Ibn Kariem had already faced down two separate cancer diagnoses, the last one in 2018, and walked away from a vehicle fire with his 10-year-old daughter just three weeks before October 12, 2026. Friends and relatives described a man who kept showing up for his students at Wesley International Academy no matter what his body had endured. He worked as an IT manager, technology teacher, and robotics coach for more than twelve years inside the Atlanta Public Schools system. Colleagues said he treated every robotics session like a chance to show kids that problems could be solved if you stayed with them. On the afternoon of October 12 he was at Six Flags Over Georgia celebrating his partner’s niece’s birthday. He sat beside the girl on the Goliath hypercoaster. According to police, he was ejected from the moving train, struck other riders, and fell beneath the attraction. Officers found him unresponsive and not breathing around 3:58 p.m. Four juveniles were injured and taken to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries. A family member later said the niece reported that he appeared to pᴀss out and that the restraint seemed to come loose.

The same man who had survived cancer treatments, a severe case of COVID-19, and a car fire was the one who did not return from a family outing. Atlanta Public Schools called him a cherished member of the Wesley International Academy community whose absence would be felt by students and staff. The academy itself said he was deeply loved and respected and that his dedication to students was evident in everything he did. A celebration of life was held on October 19 at Atlanta Masjid of Al-Islam, followed by burial at Resthaven Cemetery. Family members asked the public to remember his years of service rather than share graphic images of the final moments. Investigators from Cobb County Police and Georgia’s Office of the Commissioner of Insurance and Safety Fire are still examining the ride’s restraint system and maintenance records. The last state inspection on March 16, 2026, had found no violations. For the students who spent years building robots under his guidance, the loss removed a consistent adult who had already demonstrated that serious setbacks did not have to be permanent. The irony of surviving two cancers and a vehicle fire only to be thrown from a coaster during a birthday celebration is the detail that continues to surface in every conversation among those who knew him.

The niece, according to a family account relayed to local media, told relatives he appeared to pᴀss out and that the restraint seemed to come loose. Kariem’s own record of survival made the outcome harder for those who knew him to accept. Relatives and a family friend told multiple outlets he had overcome two bouts of cancer, the most recent in 2018, along with a severe case of COVID-19. Roughly three weeks before the park visit he and his 10-year-old daughter escaped a burning vehicle after a road accident without injury. One friend described him as a fighter who stayed positive through those earlier crises. In July he had run the Peachtree Road Race, posting about earlier health struggles that once put him in intensive care with a bacterial lung infection. He was a father, an Atlanta native who loved the city, and someone whose robotics work gave students practical experience in teamwork and design. The celebration of life was held October 19 at Atlanta Masjid of Al-Islam on Fayetteville Road, with interment afterward at Resthaven Cemetery. Family members asked the public to focus on his life of service rather than circulating any graphic images of the final moments.

Investigators from the Cobb County Police Major Crimes Unit and Georgia’s Office of the Commissioner of Insurance and Safety Fire continue examining the ride, its restraints, and maintenance records. The March 16, 2026 state inspection had reported no violations, deficiencies, or citations. Bolliger & Mabillard, the Swiss manufacturer of Goliath, said it was actively investigating and expressed deep sadness. For the students and colleagues who spent years with him, the loss removed a consistent mentor who had shown that setbacks in health or technology labs could still be met with persistence. The same man who walked away from cancer treatments, a difficult pandemic illness, and a vehicle fire was the one who did not return from a family outing that was supposed to celebrate a child’s birthday. Those who worked beside him said the guiding hand he offered in classrooms and robotics workshops will continue through the students he influenced, even as the investigation seeks answers about why the restraint system failed to keep him secured on a ride that reaches 200 feet and roughly 70 miles per hour.