Another structural issue has been located with a large roller coaster that鈥檚 been closed for weeks since a in a support column was discovered, a North Carolina agency confirmed on Friday.
A Swiss-based engineering company that designed and built the Fury 325 roller coaster at Carowinds, which sits along the North Carolina-South Carolina border, replaced that steel support column earlier this month, news outlets reported.
But the North Carolina Department of Labor, which inspects the ride and decides whether it can operate, said in an email that the agency has now been notified of a separate 鈥渨eld indication,鈥� which 鈥渃ould be either a break or a crack.鈥�
鈥淣o certificate of operation has been issued nor do we have a timeline of when the certificate of operation will be issued for the Fury 325,鈥� department spokesperson Meredith Watson said, referring other questions to Carowinds.
In a statement released Friday, Carowinds said it was conducting a full maintenance review of the ride while test runs are performed.
鈥淒uring such reviews, it is not uncommon to discover slight weld indications in various locations of a steel superstructure. It is important to note that these indications do not compromise the structural integrity or safety of the ride,鈥� the statement reads. 鈥淥nce a repair is completed, it undergoes inspection and approval before the ride is deemed operational.鈥�
Park staff after a visitor pointed out the sizable crack. State Labor Commissioner Josh Dobson that the crack had been visible for at least a week before it was shut down.
Video of the coaster, which reaches 325 feet (99 meters) in height, had showed a key support beam bending with the top visibly detached as cars with passengers barreled by. The roller coaster runs at speeds of up to 95 mph (150 kph).
The department鈥檚 Elevator and Amusement Device Bureau said it had conducted its annual inspection of Fury 325 in February and only found a few signage issues, which the park quickly corrected.
Inspections by the park, the engineering company, a third-party testing firm and the Department of Labor have been ongoing. Carowinds has said it鈥檚 changing how it inspects rides daily, including the use of drone cameras to examine areas.
While the park straddles the border between the two states, North Carolina regulators inspect Fury 325 because its nearby entrance is in North Carolina.
