PHOENIX — An Arizona man said he climbed out of a moving roller coaster after the safety bar became unlatched.
The man asked 12News not to identify him, but shared cell phone video capturing the incident.
The man said he was celebrating his niece's birthday at Castles N' Coasters in Phoenix last Sunday when the terrifying incident happened.
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“I think the worst part is having the kids there and knowing it could have been one of them," the man said. “It shouldn’t cost your life to have fun."
The man said he was on Desert Storm, a double-looping roller coaster, when the lap bar became unlatched just seconds after the ride started.
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“We start the climb, and you hear the click of the chain of the normal roller coaster," the man said. “We get just about to the top and I hear a click different from the click of the chain taking us up and so, I checked my lap bar one last time and it released.”
The man said he thinks his decision to climb out of the roller coaster and on to the cat walk possibly saved his life.
“I had mere seconds to act on whether I stayed on or got off," the man said.
He said the operator didn't notice what happened until he was on the ground.
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“She should have been watching that car and when she saw me climbing out she should have been able to hit an emergency release, should have been able to do something," the man said.
The man said he recalled hearing the lap bar latch into place before the ride started, but said the operator didn't physically check them.
“I pushed up on mine. She looked. She walked away," the man said.
Arizona does not regulate its amusement parks, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. State law requires parks to have private or insurance companies inspect rides annually.
The man told 12News he thinks regulations should be stricter.
“100 percent needs to change. I think all amusement parks that basically have people lives in their hands need to be better regulated," the man said.
He said he filed an incident report with the park, but he was not given a copy.
“I think the scariest part was the negligence of their part and just the absolute carelessness that they had throughout the entire thing," the man said.
12News reached out to Castles N' Coasters for comment but did not immediately get a response.
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