A group of young people experienced the fright of their lives on Thursday evening after a roller coaster in Texas suddenly stopped climbing.
As NBC News reported, the Iron Shark roller coaster at Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier came to a total stop in the middle of the ride, causing the riders to be stuck for hours at nearly 100 feet in the air.
Galveston firefighters arrived on the scene at roughly 5:30 PM to save the riders. The process took several hours, with the last rider being excavated at roughly 9:00 PM.
Video of the tedious rescue shows the critical moments of the successful rescue.
WATCH:
Eight roller coaster riders were stranded near the top of a Texas amusement park ride for more than three hours before firefighters could bring them down.
The Iron Shark coaster at Galveston’s Pleasure Pier malfunctioned during its climb, leaving passengers stuck nearly 100 feet… pic.twitter.com/Ubo9dQhWVU
— Fox News (@FoxNews) May 30, 2026
The Houston Independent School District announced in a statement obtained by NBC that the roller coaster passengers were students on a field trip.
It was organized by Energized for STEM Academy Middle School and STEM Academy High School, two HISD in-district charter schools.
Fire Chief Mike Varela Jr. revealed details of the heroic rescue at a news conference. He first noted that each rider was placed in a safety harness and guided into a truck basket, which then lowered them to the ground.
“Once they made it up there, you know, they were able to use their skills to calm everyone down and reassure them that the equipment being used would keep them safe,” he added.
Varela also said that the most critical moment was the transfer of the students from the roller coaster to the fire truck basket. This was due to sun exposure and concerns about dehydration.
The fire chief said the students were “shaken up,” but experienced “a sense of joy as well once their feet hit the ground.”
Terry Turney, chief operating officer of Pleasure Pier, released the following statement regarding the incident:
The ride experienced a malfunction at its initial ascent. However, as designed, it immediately stopped to keep everyone safe. Our focus immediately shifted to the safety of our eight guests.
Therefore, we contacted the fire department to assist, ensuring all guests were safely removed from the ride. A thorough inspection of the ride is currently underway.
We can’t thank the fire department enough for their quick response and assistance.
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