Cable Snaps on Popular Ride at Cedar Point Amusement Park, Leaves Guests Stranded
A popular attraction at Six Flags' Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, OH, had a major malfunction this past Sunday, Aug. 10, after a large cable became detached.
Thankfully, no one was injured during the troubling malfunction, however it did force the maintenance crew to manually evacuate guests who were left stranded on the imposing ride.
The mishap occurred on the park's well-known "Power Tower" ride, which is described as a "hard to miss thrill giant in the sky" and a "state-of-the-art adrenaline factory" that rockets riders 240 feet into the air and then promptly drops them back into a free-fall from that height.
Park Guest Gives Harrowing Description of What Happened to the 'Power Tower' Ride
A guest who happened to be waiting next in line with his children for a thrilling rise and drop on the "Power Tower" gave a pretty wild description of what happened from his upfront viewpoint.
Cedar Point closed the Power Tower after a cable on one of the ride’s towers detached. None of the guests were injured.
— Cleveland 19 News (@cleveland19news) August 12, 2025
????: Amusement Park Portal pic.twitter.com/X1AZICha2M
"Me and my two daughters were next in line, standing directly below the drop towers," the parkgoer said. "I heard a twing type of sound—like tension being released—and then this giant cable came down. It was like slow motion."
"I yelled, 'Oh my God!' It happened so fast. Then the cable hit the guard tower, and it sounded like the earth was coming to an end. That's when everyone started freaking out, scattering, and running," the descriptive guest continued. "That guard shack was 10 feet from us. It was very close to being a bad situation."
Considering the ride featuring a free-fall that's paired with speeds of up to 60 mph, a cable suddenly snapping is probably an incredibly scary experience to be so close to in general, let alone the sound of it offering a feeling "like the earth was coming to an end."
"It sounded like Earth was coming to an End."
— Local 12/WKRC-TV (@Local12) August 12, 2025
Cedar Point's drop tower, the "Power Tower," was evacuated after a cable on the ride failed when it "broke from the top." pic.twitter.com/fsQ0kst6MG
Ohio Department of Agriculture Issues Stop Operation Order on Cedar Point's 'Power Tower'
The Ohio Department of Agriculture has issued a stop operation order while it continues to investigate the cause of the ride's malfunction.
"ODA's Amusement Ride Safety Division and its inspectors have placed a Stop Operation Order on the ride and are working with Cedar Point and the ride’s manufacturer to determine the cause of the incident," Bryan Levin of the ODA's Division of Amusement Ride Safety & Fairs said.
Safety System Worked as Designed During 'Power Tower' Ride Malfunction
Despite an ongoing investigation into why this occurred, a spokesman for Cedar Point said the ride's safety system reacted just as it's designed to for incidents like the unfortunate cable snap.
"The ride's safety system performed as designed, the ride vehicle returned to the loading position and all guests exited the ride safely," Cedar Point spokesman Ryan Clark said.
There won't be any free-falls from 240 feet in the air happening any time soon on the "Power Tower," as a complete re-inspection of the ride is currently underway.
Since the main attractions at Cedar Point usually end come Labor Day weekend, there's not a whole lot of time for the ride to be fully re-inspected and back in service for those seeking one last adrenaline rush.