Carowinds Fury 325 Closure Highlights Gap Between Routine Inspections and Public Surveillance
A visitor’s video of a cracked support column on the Fury 325 roller coaster at Carowinds led to a six-week shutdown after routine inspections missed the flaw. Engineers found the steel column fractured along a weld line, prompting a full structural review and the installation of a new column. The incident raised questions about whether scheduled maintenance checks are sufficient to detect developing structural issues in high-speed attractions, as the defect was visible to the public before it was caught by inspectors.
