Park: Six Flags Great Adventure (New Jersey, United States) Ride Opened: 1979 Deaths: 1 Rolling Thunder was Six Flags Great Adventure's first wooden roller coaster, opening in 1979 on the park's fifth year. The ride featured two coasters that would 'race' against each other along a fast, hilly track. The roller coaster never had any notable incidents during its public runs. However, a 20-year old park employee died while riding Rolling Thunder during a test run in 1981. Despite 4 other employees being present on the ride when the incident occurred, nobody saw the employee actually fall from the ride. It was concluded that the employee may have not secured himself properly, with the official statement stating that he " may have assumed an unauthorized riding position that did not make use of safety restraints."Rolling Thunder continued to operate until the end of 2013, when it was closed to make way for Zumanjaro: Drop of Doom.