Essex rollercoaster breakdown leaves riders hanging at 30 metres | Southend-on-Sea

A 30-metre high rollercoaster broke down leaving passengers left hanging in the air for up to 40 minutes.

Videos on social media showed people on the Rage ride at Adventure Island in Southend, Essex, stuck at a near 90-degree angle facing the sky on Friday afternoon.

Passengers of the carriage were evacuated and safely returned to the ground within 40 minutes, the park said.

Rage is advertised as Adventure Island’s “biggest and best” rollercoaster, with “loops, twists, and flat-out speeds”.

The ride carries a 120cm minimum height restriction.

Marc Miller, the managing director of the Stockvale Group, which runs Adventure Island, said: “Just after 2pm today, a carriage on Rage stopped on the lift.

“Our highly trained team immediately initiated our ride evacuation plan, which has been certified by the Health and Safety Executive and Essex fire and rescue.

“All passengers were returned to the ground, safe and sound, and reunited with their families within 40 minutes.”