Man climbs out of moving rollercoaster after safety bar unlatches: 'I had mere seconds to act'

A man had to climb out of a rollercoaster in the middle of the ride as his safety bar unlatched.

NBC affiliate 12News reported that the man, who asked not to be identified, said he was celebrating his niece's birthday at Castles N' Coasters in Phoenix, Arizona on Nov. 24 when the incident happened. NBC also shared a video of it being caught on camera.

He was on Desert Storm, a double-looping rollercoaster when the lap bar unlatched seconds after the ride started.

“I think the worst part is having the kids there and knowing it could have been one of them," the man told the news outlet. “It shouldn’t cost your life to have fun."

He explained that the click of a normal rollercoaster's chain was heard at the start of the climb but when they were about to reach the top, he heard a different click.

"I checked my lapbar one last time and it released," he said.

Looking back, he said his decision to climb out of the rollercoaster and onto the walkway possibly saved his life.

“I had mere seconds to act on whether I stayed on or got off," the man recalled.

He noted that the operator didn't notice what happened until he was on the ground. “She should have been watching that car," he said, "and when she saw me climbing out she should have been able to hit an emergency release, should have been able to do something."

The man, who recalled hearing the lap bar latch into place before the ride, said the operator didn't physically check them. "I pushed up on mine. She looked. She walked away."

The man said he filed an incident report with the park but wasn't given a copy.

“I think the scariest part was the negligence [on] their part and just the absolute carelessness that they had throughout the entire thing," he continued.

The man believes there must be stricter rules on Arizona's amusement parks. It doesn't have regulations so far, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. State law only requires parks to have private or insurance companies inspect rides annually.

“One hundred percent needs to change," the man said. "I think all amusement parks that basically have people's lives in their hands need to be better regulated."

Castles N' Coaster has yet to release a statement on the matter.