A malfunction on a roller coaster sent 27 people to hospitals, most with minor chest and neck injuries, a park official said.

The accident happened on the Son of Beast roller coaster at Paramount's Kings Island just northeast of Cincinnati. WCPO-TV reported that witnesses saw the roller coaster come to an abrupt stop about 4:45 p.m.

Riders complained of discomfort after the coaster completed a circuit and pulled back into the boarding area, said Maureen Kaiser, a spokeswoman for the park.

Twenty-seven people were injured, Kaiser said. Seventeen had been released from hospitals within five hours of the accident and one had been admitted with injuries that weren't life-threatening, she said.

She did not know specifics about the others but said the injuries weren't life-threatening.

Park officials shut down the ride and were examining it, Kaiser said.

The park's Web site describes the roller coaster as "the tallest, fastest and only looping wooden coaster on the planet" that hurtles down a 214-foot (64-meter) hill at more than 78 mph (125 kph). The coaster, more than 7,000 feet (2,100 meters) long, features a 118-foot (35-meter) tall loop.