Six Flags’ Kingda Ka, once the world’s tallest and fastest roller coaster, comes down in implosion

By Laura Fay, Joe Brandt

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    New Jersey (KYW) — Kingda Ka, once the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world, is now a pile of rubble after it was imploded at New Jersey’s Six Flags Great Adventure on Friday morning.

The implosion happened ahead of schedule at the park in Jackson Township. Earlier, the Ocean County prosecutor’s office posted on Facebook warning residents that they may hear “a series of rapid explosions” coming from the theme park in Jackson Township Friday between 9 and 10 a.m.

There’s no reason to be alarmed, the post said, but residents were told to take precautions for people and pets who are sensitive to loud noises.

Six Flags retired the coaster, which opened in 2005, to make room for new rides, the company said late last year.

Both the tallest and fastest coaster in the world when construction was complete, Kingda Ka launched riders to a top speed of 128 mph. The height record held through its lifetime, but the speed record was broken by Formula Rossa, a coaster at Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The coaster opened in 2010 and boasts a top speed of 149 mph.

Kingda Ka has carried more than 12 million riders since it opened in 2005, Six Flags said.

The Twister and Parachute Tower rides and The Sky Way, an elevated cable car, are also being removed from the park. The park is also set to debut the long-awaited The Flash: Vertical Velocity coaster this year, which would be the world’s first super boomerang roller coaster.

The company also says a “multi-world-record-breaking launch roller coaster” will open in 2026.

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