Nearly 24 people were injured during a self-help seminar led by Tony Robbins in which they were required to walk across 24 eight-foot lanes of burning coals. Though some of the participants disregarded the pain, saying it was part of the experience, others reported second- and third-degree burns. One participant, who said the experience “transformed people’s lives in a single night,” theorized that those whose feet were burned “were out of state,” suggesting they had the wrong attitude. Since the people who participated in the coal walk not only volunteered, but paid between $600 and $2,000, to do so, the San Jose Police Department said no charges will be made against the Robbins group. A person connected to the self-help guru said, anonymously, that Robbins spends a few hours preparing for the coal walk and that, while walking across 2,000 degree coals is not danger-free, people usually end up with “hot spots” only when they slow down and stop. “But I’ve never heard of anyone having third-degree burns.” Robbins himself has been unavailable for comment, as he gives interviews only to the Today show and Piers Morgan Tonight.
