Star Jet, Steel roller coaster at Casino Pier, Seaside Heights, United States
Star Jet was a steel roller coaster at Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, standing about 16 meters (52 feet) tall with three cars that each held two riders for a total capacity of six passengers. The ride used a chain lift hill to pull cars up before they rolled through the steel track layout.
The ride opened in 2002 to replace an older Jet Star coaster and served visitors for ten years. Hurricane Sandy hit on October 29, 2012, destroying part of the pier and sending the structure into the ocean where it remained partially visible for months.
The name Star Jet echoed the Jet Star that ran on Casino Pier from 1970 to 2000, and the resemblance caused the ride to be misidentified as Jet Star in media reports and even on Casino Pier's own website after Hurricane Sandy. The coaster's wreck became a widely reproduced image of the storm's damage along the New Jersey coast.
The wreckage was removed in May 2013, and today no visible remains exist in the water or on the beach. Visitors can explore the rebuilt pier where new rides have been installed.
On January 8, 2013, a man climbed the derelict Star Jet to raise awareness for Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts and fixed a United States flag at the top of the structure before police arrested him. The flag-topped blue frame rising from the surf appears in photographs of the wreck.
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