So... I take it this wasn't the first time that folk were carted off to the emergency room from one of James "Death" Ray's "Spiritual Warrior" bake-offs!
[There are a ton of comments on this article, too many to post. I also suspect that they've been heavily moderated...]-------------- • -------------- • --------------
The Arizona RepublicResort near Sedona had previous sweat lodge incidentBy JJ Hensley - Oct. 15, 2009 12:00 AMThe scene that unfolded outside a sweat lodge at a remote compound near Sedona was not the first time paramedics responded to one of James Arthur Ray's seminars at the Angel Valley Spiritual Retreat Center.
Records released Wednesday show firefighters also were called to the center for a sweat-lodge-related illness in mid-October 2005.
Amayra Hamilton, one of the retreat's owners, said it was another Ray retreat.
The records show paramedics treated a 42-year-old man who was unconscious after spending time in a sweat lodge. The man was taken to Verde Valley Medical Center about 20 minutes later. Hamilton said the man returned the next day.
As for the events that left two dead and four hospitalized last week, records that the Verde Valley Fire District released Wednesday depict a scene that tested the resources of the emergency responders in the Sedona area.
By the time the legion of ambulances, fire engines and helicopters reached the remote area at about 7:40 p.m. Thursday, emergency workers found "multiple people lying on the ground around a sweat lodge needing medical condition," according to reports.
In addition to two patients in cardiac arrest, some were lying on the ground unconscious and others were "walking around not feeling well," according to reports.
Kirby Brown, 38, of Westtown, N.Y., and James Shore, 40, of Milwaukee, were later pronounced dead at Verde Valley Medical Center. Services for both will be Saturday.
More people who were in the sweat lodge had moved to the retreat center's dining hall and, according to Angel Valley and Ray's spokesman, didn't need any medical attention. Eight of those people later went to emergency rooms in Sedona and Cottonwood after paramedics assessed them.
Others were feeling ill, but the doctor in charge of the outdoor triage scene determined that those who were not critical were "all becoming better fast" and instead recommended they call 911 or go to the hospital if they started to feel sick.
The reports didn't say what caused all of the people to get sick, although authorities have ruled out carbon monoxide poisoning. Investigators have said there were more than 60 people in the 415-square-foot enclosure.
Kim Moore of Verde Valley Ambulance Co. was one of the emergency-medical people called to the scene last week. She said one of her patients had burns. People didn't want to talk about what happened because the event was intended to be a personal spiritual experience.
"The people weren't talking about it, the ones who could talk," she said.
Ray stuck to his schedule of events this week. He told a Los Angeles-area seminar Tuesday night that his advisers told him not to, but he wanted to keep his commitments.
Ray had another seminar scheduled for Wednesday and also was scheduled to begin his two-day World Wealth Summit in San Diego on Friday. His Web site says the two-day event costs nearly $1,000. Authorities said people at the Sedona event paid more than $9,000 for the five days of lectures and exercises that culminated with the sweat-lodge event.
Howard Bragman, Ray's spokesman, said Ray wouldn't comment on the ongoing investigation.
"There's more questions than answers right now," he said.
Of the four people hospitalized after Thursday's events, two remained at Flagstaff Medical Center on Wednesday afternoon, with one patient in good condition and one in critical condition.
The family of Liz Neuman released a statement that said she remained in a coma in critical condition.
"Liz is still fighting hard and her family asks for everyone to keep her in their thoughts and prayers," according to the statement.
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