egree.

 Teaching is not an easy job, and so I really hope that I can do him justice and honor him really well because he did a great job for us, and I hope to do the same for my future students,  said Soledad.

 And I think that his class was probably like the first like hint of like I like this. I might want to do this in the future,  said Juan Pablo.

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 This is absolutely tragic,  said Caleb Booth, a former ride operator at Six Flags Over Texas.

As a former ride operator at Six Flags Over Texas, Booth said he was trained to operate different thrill coasters and rides, some similar to Goliath.

A roller coaster is shown at Six Flags over Georgia on Monday, Oct. 12, 2026 in Austell, Ga. (AP Photo/Emilie Megnien) (Emilie Megnien | AP Photo/Emilie Megnien)

He says Goliath is a hyper coaster, where the tallest point is at least 200 feet.

Booth said riders are usually locked in with a clamshell restraint. Operators are in charge of making sure the restraints are positioned correctly for everyone.

 Usually, you're going to hear quite a few clicks before you get to what we refer to as a minimum verification position,  Booth said.  Essentially the ride's computer makes sure that every single restraint is far enough down such that it's okay sending the train out of the station and continuing on through the course. 

 So a lot of times, what will happen is if we don't meet that minimum verification, we'll ask the operator to go ahead, unlock those restraints. We're going to ask the rider to go ahead and sit all the way back in their seats, and then we'll try that again,  explained Booth.

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Secondary restraints, such as seat belts, are seen in certain models, according to Booth.

 I would be hesitant to immediately jump to it was the restraint that failed. We simply don't know. There's not enough evidence yet,  said Booth.

Booth said riders falling off are a rare occurrence. Booth said during his training and extensive interest in coasters, he learned that rides have redundant systems in place, from various sensors that will tell the ride's computer and operator if there are issues or warning signs before taking off and during the ride.

 If even the slightest thing goes wrong, most operators are trained to respond to that in such a way that keeps everybody safe,  Booth said.

Booth said the coaster training felt sufficient for him, which included multiple run-throughs with a supervisor present and a test.

The tragic accident has left students remembering Kariem as an amazing educator.

 As someone who loved his job and loved his students, and was really passionate about you know what he did,  Soledad said.

 Always as like the cool teacher that everybody would want to go to,  Juan Pablo said.