Four guests at Six Flags Over Georgia were taken to a hospital after a falling tree struck them near the park’s entrance during a severe Sunday evening storm. The park’s medical staff and local emergency medical services responded to the scene on Riverside Parkway SW in Austell. Six Flags Over Georgia said the four guests were transported for further evaluation. The area was under a severe thunderstorm warning until 7:15 PM EDT on Sunday.
The injuries are part of a wider storm that knocked out power to 300,000 Georgians at its peak and killed a 55-year-old Atlanta realtor when a tree fell on his northeast Atlanta home. The National Weather Service warning that covered the park area also named Six Flags Over Georgia among the locations in the storm’s path. Cobb County Fire and Emergency Services said earlier that three to five patrons had been hit, with two seriously hurt. Park officials have not released the current medical conditions or identities of the four.
What Happened at Six Flags Over Georgia
A severe storm rolled through the Austell area late Sunday afternoon. The National Weather Service in Peachtree City issued a severe thunderstorm warning at 6:40 PM EDT for southern Cobb County, northeastern Douglas County, and southwestern Fulton County, in effect until 7:15 PM EDT. Six Flags Over Georgia sits inside that warning zone, on Riverside Parkway SW.
Theme park medical staff and local emergency medical services responded near the park’s entrance, where four guests were struck by a fallen tree. First responders treated the injured at the scene before medics took them to a local hospital for further evaluation. A Channel 2 photographer at the scene saw a couple of police vehicles at the Six Flags Over Georgia parking lot after the response. The WSB-TV report was first published at 10:10 PM EDT on Sunday.
A report on the four guests struck at the park entrance was first filed by FOX 5 Atlanta at 10:30 PM EDT, with reporter Jameson Moyer on the byline. Park officials have not released the current medical conditions or identities of the four injured guests. It also remains unknown how much structural damage occurred near the gates or whether the severe weather forced the amusement park to adjust its operating hours.
The Park’s Statement and Cobb Fire’s Account
Six Flags Over Georgia issued a short statement to local media on Sunday night, and a separate report carried the park’s full response. The park attributed the injuries to severe weather moving through the area.
Our medical staff and local EMS responded to four guests who were struck by a fallen tree near the park’s entrance during severe weather in the area. The guests were transported to a local hospital for further evaluation.
WSB-TV reporter Kimberly Wright carried the statement in full after Cobb County Fire and Emergency Services’ earlier update. The WSB-TV transcript attributes the statement to Six Flags Over Georgia, though the page renders the park’s name as “Six Flags Over Gerogia” twice, a clear transcription typo. The statement itself does not specify the extent of injuries or how the guests came to be in the path of the tree.
Cobb Fire said earlier that three to five patrons had been hit by a tree limb, with two seriously hurt. The phrasing leaves a small gap between the county’s “three to five” estimate and Six Flags’ final “four guests” total. The two accounts do not directly conflict, since an early scene estimate can shift as medics complete triage. Cobb County did not release additional details by the time the WSB-TV report was last updated at 2:10 AM EDT on Monday.
The Sunday Evening Storm Behind the Park
Across Georgia, 300,000 Georgians lost power at one point over the weekend, with more than 86,000 customers still in the dark as of Monday morning, per storm damage and power outages across metro Atlanta. The counties most affected at that hour were Fannin, Jones, and Twiggs. At Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, 57 flights were delayed and 86 canceled as of Monday morning. Georgia Power told FOX 5 it was seeing large amounts of damage across Metro Atlanta and North Georgia and asked customers in affected areas to keep safety a top priority. Cobb County has weathered similar storm outbreaks before, including the flooding that Tropical Storm Helene brought to the area.
The same system killed one person in northeast Atlanta. The victim has been identified as 55-year-old George Heery Jr., a well-known Atlanta realtor, crushed when a tree fell on his home during the thunderstorm. Atlanta Fire Rescue confirmed the death earlier on Sunday, and FOX 5 reporter Alexa Liacko reported from the scene that other people inside the home escaped without injury. Wind gusts at Hartsfield-Jackson peaked at 69 mph around the time the tree fell, the National Weather Service told FOX 5.
Emergency management in Cherokee County confirmed two more people sustained minor injuries after a tree fell on a car on Yellow Creek Road near Hightower Road. A Milton woman, Susan Warner, and her 11-year-old daughter ran when they heard a tree cracking, then heard a large boom behind them as it came down. Warner told FOX 5 both she and her daughter were uninjured.
Other reported damage from the same system included:
- A driver on Lenox Road in Atlanta escaped injury when a tree slammed into the ground and got tangled in power lines close to his car, captured on nearby footage.
- At the Sheraton Suites hotel at The Battery in Cobb County, powerful winds appeared to break off part of the building’s outside wall, leaving guests in the dark until the building’s generator kicked in, viewer Derek Mobley said.
- The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office shared a photo of a large tree down on Butterworth Road at Pecan Drive and asked drivers to avoid the area.
- West Brookhaven Drive NE was shut down after a tree blocked the roadway.
- White County’s North Georgia Wildlife Park reported trees down around its perimeter fencing, damaging wolf, capybara, and deer habitats; all animals remained safe and contained, the park said.
- Three teenagers in Jasper County helped deputies clear trees from Jackson Lake Road after the storm, the sheriff’s office said.
- A FOX 5 viewer in Cleveland, Georgia, submitted photos showing weather damage in the area.
The NWS Warning That Named the Park
The National Weather Service in Peachtree City issued a severe thunderstorm warning at 6:40 PM EDT Sunday. The full text is in the warning bulletin for the park area. It ran until 7:15 PM EDT. The warning explicitly named Six Flags Over Georgia among the locations in the storm’s path.
The bulletin listed the hazards as 60 mph wind gusts and penny size hail, radar indicated, with expected damage to roofs, siding, and trees. The full list of named locations also included Atlanta, Douglasville, City of South Fulton, Smyrna, East Point, Powder Springs, Austell, Lithia Springs, Sweetwater Creek State Park, Chapel Hill, Bankhead, Cascade Heights, Campbellton, Bolton, Sandtown, and Mableton. The storm was located over Sweetwater Creek State Park at 6:40 PM EDT, moving north at 25 mph. The warning was first issued at 6:40 PM and expired on schedule at 7:15 PM EDT. The bulletin advised residents to move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a building for protection.
Georgia Power told FOX 5 its crews and automated systems were responding to assess damage, reroute service where possible, and safely restore power as quickly as possible. The utility also warned customers to watch for downed power lines concealed by fallen trees or standing water. The warning’s end came as the storm continued to track across north and middle Georgia into the overnight hours.
What Remains Unknown
Three concrete questions are open as of Monday morning. The current medical conditions of the four hospitalized guests have not been released. The identities of the four also remain undisclosed. The county’s earlier description of the injuries as “serious” in two cases has not been updated since Sunday night.
The extent of any structural damage near the park’s entrance has not been confirmed. Whether the severe weather forced Six Flags Over Georgia to adjust Sunday operating hours, or alter Monday’s schedule, is also still unannounced. The storm cell moved out of the warning area at 7:15 PM EDT Sunday.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many people were hurt at Six Flags Over Georgia on Sunday?
Six Flags Over Georgia confirmed four guests were transported to a hospital, while Cobb County Fire’s initial estimate ran higher, at three to five patrons hit. Two of the injured were seriously hurt, Cobb Fire said.
When did the severe thunderstorm warning in the Six Flags Over Georgia area expire?
The warning was issued at 6:40 PM EDT on Sunday, July 5, 2026, and ran until 7:15 PM EDT that evening.
What weather hazards did the National Weather Service forecast for the park area?
The warning called for 60 mph wind gusts and penny size hail, radar indicated, with the bulletin warning residents to expect tree, roof, and siding damage.
Did the same storm system cause any deaths in metro Atlanta?
Yes. A separate tree fall in northeast Atlanta killed 55-year-old Atlanta realtor George Heery Jr. early Sunday, with wind gusts at Hartsfield-Jackson peaking at 69 mph around the time of the collapse.
How many Georgia Power customers lost electricity during the storm?
About 300,000 Georgians lost power at one point over the weekend, with more than 86,000 customers still without electricity as of Monday morning.
