Cobb leaders address fatal Six Flags incident as probe grows

In the meantime, a news conference in Cobb County regarding the tragedy at Six Flags over Georgia is just getting underway. Let's listen in together. We know just how gripped we are by this and all of our interest in seeing the outcome of the investigations for the safety of our community moving forward. So I'm joined today by Chief Ballard and representatives of Cobb County Police Department. I'm sorry, sir. Captain Dan's also who's here with me today and thank you both for representing Cobb County Police On Monday a terrible tragedy happened at Six Flags Over Georgia here in Cobb County a man lost his life and others were injured I said that day I can only imagine the horror for those who are at the park, for the family, for those who witnessed the event, the employees, and still four days later, that remains true. First and foremost, our thoughts are with the family of Mr. Hassan Kareem, who just at 42 years old, according to reports, was an educator, an IT professional, someone who beloved by his family and his students and who was known to his community to be dedicated to his students as well. My heart aches for him and his family who are going through this very terrible time. I also want to recognize again the pain of the people who were present, the guests who saw what happened and the Six Flags employees who were present in the worst moment of their working lives and also to the members of our public safety who first responded to that tragedy. And our entire community is still carrying the weight of this matter. So again, we're here today to provide some human context to this, to let you know just how impacted we are, to give you some context also on public safety's response and to make sure that our residents know that we are taking this matter seriously. I also want to be clear about one thing, is that we are not announcing any investigative findings today, that those investigations are still active and the agencies responsible still need time and space to do their work thoroughly and without our speculation. Our county is committed to the safety of our residents and our visitors and our workforce, and this is our priority again for the entire county and for me as chairwoman and we will share information with you that's been verified when it is appropriate and we will also respect the integrity investigations that are occurring in the state office as well as respecting the privacy of those who've been impacted certainly people want to know what happened and what it means going forward, and I believe that those are fair questions. And residents, visitors, our community deserves a fact-based review, a thorough review with clear answers when the responsible agencies are able to get them. So a little bit about who was investigating what. Cobb County police officers responded immediately to the scene, and we had detectives with major crimes who were leading the law enforcement investigation into the circumstances of this incident, but the investigation of the equipment at the park is separate from that, and the Georgia Office of Insurance and Safety and Fire is reviewing the regulatory compliance of the park, including whether or not state requirements were followed, and those agencies, or that agency, excuse me, is responsible for coordinating with the park the investigations that are on site. The state has confirmed that Goliath remains secured and out of service, and it is my understanding that the park intends to open today. Any decision about whether, when, and under what conditions the actual ride will begin operating again will be up to the park and the insurance commissioner. With respect to our community, Six Flags is a significant part of our tourism landscape here in the county. There are few of us that can say that we have not been to the park at one point in time or another or our children haven't been there. And so this impacts me and others quite personally. But it also impacts the employees who are there. It impacts our residents. It impacts the businesses that surround the park. Right now, though, our attention belongs to the people who were hurt and to the family that is still reeling by this very tragic incident that took place. At this moment, I know there's been some inquiry about economic impact, the investigations also that are occurring right now, and we're just not in a position to talk about that. I can just encourage you to rely on the information that comes out of Commissioner King's office, and I believe he put out a public statement recently. I'm sorry. Just all in all, we know that you have questions. Our community has questions. I think we're all deserving of answers with respect to what has taken place and we're all deserving of some compassion because no one could have anticipated that something this grave would occur here. And we will continue to work with anyone as requested of us, which includes our state partners or the park. I'm going to turn things over now to our Deputy Chief Ballard to explain the police department's role in the investigative process. Thank you. Good afternoon and thank you for being here. So our role in this investigation, we investigate all deaths in unincorporated Cobb County. However, we're only assisting the state in this investigation. The state is the lead investigators in this case because we don't have the authority to inspect or investigate machinery at theme parks. We do document our involvement in this case, and if there are no criminal charges, we will close our case as soon as the state completes theirs. And that's basically our involvement in this case. Thank you. So we'll take any questions that you may have at this time. Yes, ma'am. What do you think of the park reopening tonight? Yes, we understand that they're reopening and that has been coordinated with the state. We also know that there are a lot of questions still around what's taking place and just ask that people be sensitive to the information that's been put out by the park and also by the state and to use their wisdom with respect to how they return to the park. Chairwoman Cupid, can you talk about the police response that day? I understand an officer was already on the ground when this happened. Can you tell us what that officer witnessed and how that officer is doing? I would need to defer to public safety with respect to that. Well, at this moment in time, we're not going to say what happened or what the person observed that day, but we do have an amazing peer support and chaplains program that basically deals with our officer wellness on our department. That's all I can share at this moment in time. Okay, you're listening in as Cobb County leaders are now taking questions about the tragedy that happened at Six Flags over Georgia where a man lost his life. Officials couldn't really talk about the investigation itself and offer details there, but they did talk about some of the procedural things that have to happen and what they are asking for the community as Six Flags reopens tonight and what to expect in the coming days. We're going to continue to keep you updated as leaders look into this situation. In the meantime, coming up next, I want to take you out live as we get more information regarding the president's rally scheduled in Dalton, Georgia today. The president is running very behind. He has not even landed here yet at Dobbins Air Reserve Base, but we are keeping an eye on that. More to come.