A goose was killed by an amusement-park ride at Six Flags Great Adventure and as spectators watched in horror, according to a published report.
The Asbury Park Press says the ill-fated goose landed on the sloped conveyor belt that pulls rafts up to a loading dock of the Congo Rapids ride on Sunday at the Ocean County amusement park.
Witness Nicole Cora, 26. of Stonington, Conn., told the newspaper that operators stopped the belt and tried to scare the bird, but it did not budge.
They restarted the belt in a second attempt to scare the goose but could not stop it in time before the big bird was dragged into the rides' two conveyor belts, Corsa said.
Said Cora: "It was disgusting. Everyone could see it ... little children saw."
Six Flags spokeswoman Kristin Siebeneicher said the ride could not be completely stopped without putting patrons at risk.
"The only way to stop Congo Rapids is for the operator to press the emergency stop, which causes all boats to be quickly flushed into the ride reservoir next to the ride, and then guests must be evacuated from the boats by rope," she said.
