BUSINESS
Kings Island building new steel roller coaster Orion to be amusement park's tallest, fastest
wire reports
![The iconic Eiffel Tower replica is a landmark at Kings Island amusement park in Mason. [File photo]](/gcdn/authoring/2019/08/18/NCOD/ghows-OH-a9b1f0f6-163f-48e2-835b-5a78a8d755a7-43ee1e85.jpeg?width=660&height=433&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
MASON — A new steel roller coaster is set to debut at one of Ohio's largest amusement parks next year.
"Orion" will open at Kings Island in Mason in the spring of 2020.
Kings Island officials said it will be the tallest and fastest coaster at the Cincinnati-area amusement park.
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Mike Koontz, vice president and general manager of the park, said the ride is categorized as a Giga coaster. Coasters in that category have a height or drop between 300 to 399 feet.
The Orion will move at 91 mph and feature a 300-foot drop.
Only six other Giga coasters currently operate throughout the world, Kings Island officials said.
The new coaster is being built in the area formerly occupied by Firehawk, a coaster that was dismantled last year.