Unsuccessful Coal Run In Au / Wädenswil - Organizer Of The Fire Run: "I Didn't Do Anything Wrong"

– Firewalk organizer: “I didn’t do anything wrong”

13 participants in the fire on the Au peninsula were hospitalized with burns. The organizer sees no errors. The temperature of the coal was even lower than usual.

Posted today at 8:27 am

It cooled down again: The next morning, after a walk with the fire, there was a pile of coal left.

Photo: Daniel Hitz

The event of the Goldbach Group team on the Au Peninsula ended on Tuesday evening with around 30 injured and a large number of rescuers. After the fire walk, 13 participants even had to be taken to hospital because they suffered burns to their feet.

Now he has made contact with the organizer of the walk on fire, in which the participants march on red-hot coals. “I didn’t do anything wrong,” says Thomy Widmer to “Blick.” The organizer of the Aargau event mentally and technically prepared 120 participants for the run to the seminar.

500 instead of 700 degrees

According to the 59-year-old, the temperature of the burnt beech wood was measured. “Normally you can already go through this at 700 degrees – we waited for it to go below 500 degrees,” he continues.

Four lanes are set. There was one coach per track. Employees of the Goldbach Group, which, like this newspaper, are part of the TX Group, were instructed to cross the railway line at “swift and military steps”. “So that there are no burns,” he tells the newspaper.

On Tuesday evening, rescuers were on site with a large contingent in front of Au’s country inn.

Photo: Kapo ZH

Twenty-five people on the strip were also told that chunks of coal could get caught between their toes and “must not walk, jump or ride over them”. Unfortunately, Widmer continues with Blick, the coaches had to correct the firewall participants several times. There was a water bath on each track.

15 minutes after the run, the first woman reported burn blisters on her feet. In the end, according to Widmer, about 6 people were injured. Other sources said about 30 injuries, the cantonal police wrote about 25 people who needed treatment and 13 seriously injured.

The event organizer Widmer is unaware of the mistakes, he says. All participated voluntarily. But: “I feel sorry for every participant who has suffered the pain,” he finally says.

International attention

“Something like this shouldn’t have happened,” says Otto Gerber. The Wädenswiler has been organizing fire walks for 36 years and has spoken to this newspaper. Burns shouldn’t happen to even one person, he says. Not to mention 30.

The incident at the Landgasthof Au car park in the municipality of Wädenswil made headlines around the world. BBC reports, as well as many other media portals from Europe. History has even drawn attention to the Arabian Peninsula, the Far East, Latin America and the United States.

Pascal Unternurer is an editor in the Politics and Economy section of Zurich. Since 2012, he has been dealing mainly with the political affairs of the city and the canton of Zurich. Previously, he worked exclusively for Winterthur “Landboten” for 12 years.