Riders stuck on rides at Carowinds after power outages

An apparent power outage at the Carowinds amusement park left park-goers stuck on roller coasters and rides Thursday night.

The power went off parkwide at about 7:50 p.m. and stayed out for two or three minutes, according to Harry Scheeler, who was in the park at the time.

“All of a sudden someone came over the loudspeaker saying not to panic,” Scheeler said.

Afterward, people were stuck on at least three rides – the roller coasters Afterburn and Intimidator and a rotating swing ride called WindSeeker, the tallest in the park.

At the park, riders could be seen on the Windseeker ride in the air, according to WBTV. The ride wasn’t moving and someone was talking to riders over a loudspeaker. Around 9:30 p.m. park personnel appeared to be manually lowering the ride, Scheeler said.

It was unclear whether the problem was with electricity inside the park or a greater outage. Duke Energy wasn’t reporting any outages nearby.

WindSeeker, which is 301 feet tall, has been a source of problems at the park before.

The ride malfunctioned in July 2013, stranding 64 passengers high above the amusement park for more than an hour.

A year earlier, in June 2012, the ride’s safety system activated, suspending 25 riders about 30 feet off the ground for nearly three hours.

This story was originally published June 10, 2016 at 10:05 AM with the headline "Riders stuck on rides at Carowinds after power outages."