10 Years Ago: 2016 Mountain Training Tragedy at Valfréjus

Ten years ago, in January 2016, a group of 52 cadres and legionnaires from the French Foreign Legion’s 2nd Foreign Engineer Regiment (2e REG) arrived in the mountains near Valfréjus, a ski resort in the Savoie department in eastern France, for an initial mountain adaptation course. This is a routine training meant to prepare units for operations in harsh, high-altitude conditions. What began as a standard exercise, turned into the deadliest loss the regiment had faced since its creation.

On January 18, 2016, in the early afternoon, the legionnaires from the 3rd Company 2e REG moved on snowshoes near the Valfréjus ski slopes, progressing toward the Petit Argentier Pass at around 7,900 feet (2,400 m). As the group crossed a mountain area, a large avalanche released above them and swept through a valley. The slide was estimated to be about 1,300 feet (400 m) wide. Eighteen legionnaires were caught in the moving snow. Five legionnaires died at the scene and several others were wounded. A sixth legionnaire died one week later in the hospital.

A formal military tribute to honor the fallen legionnaires was held at the 2e REG on January 26, 2016.

In the days after the disaster, French officials stressed that training under real-world conditions is essential to prepare soldiers for demanding missions. However, in December 2019, a military court in Lyon found four senior cadres guilty of involuntary manslaughter and involuntary injury, and imposed suspended prison sentences and fines. At the same time, it ordered that the convictions not be entered into their criminal records.

Despite this tragic incident and the subsequent court proceedings, it should be noted that the 2e REG and other Foreign Legion regiments routinely conduct mountain training in similar conditions. Even so, this is the only mountain exercise in the Legion’s recorded history to have ended in a tragedy of this scale.

Since the end of the Algerian War in 1962, the Foreign Legion has generally suffered only limited combat losses, usually involving one or two men. The 2016 avalanche, which claimed six lives, therefore ranks among the three deadliest single incidents for the Legion in the post-1962 period, alongside the 1976 Djibouti helicopter crash, which also killed six legionnaires. By comparison, the later 1982 Mont Garbi Accident in Djibouti was much more devastating, with almost 30 legionnaires losing their lives.

Victims of the 2016 Valfréjus tragedy:

Corporal Touré LAMARANA (33), from Madagascar, who received French citizenship after five years of service; he joined the Legion in April 2008
1st Class Legionnaire Samuel SIMI (26), from Italy; joined in July 2013
Legionnaire Lal Bahadur KHAPANGI (24), from Nepal; joined in August 2014
Legionnaire Gheorghe PALADE (21), from Moldova; joined in January 2015
Legionnaire Denis HALILI (21), from Albania; joined in July 2015
1st Class Legionnaire David HETENYI (23), from Hungary; joined in December 2014 (the sixth fatality)

2e REG - 6 killed legionnaires - Mountain Training Tragedy at Valfréjus - January 2016 — The five legionnaires who died at the scene. From left to right: Legionnaire *Denis Halili*, Legionnaire *Lal Bahadur Khapangi*, Corporal *Touré Lamarana*, Legionnaire *Gheorghe Palade*, 1st Class Legionnaire *Samuel Simi*.

2e REG - Mountain Training Tragedy at Valfréjus - January 2016 - 1st Class Legionnaire David Hetenyi — 1st Class Legionnaire *David Hetenyi*. He died one week later in the hospital.

2e REG - Mountain Training Tragedy at Valfréjus - January 2016 - Hommage — Paying tribute to the six victims of the Valfréjus tragedy, January 26, 2016.

For further information on the commemoration of the six fallen legionnaires, see:

2e REG: Five legionnaires killed in the Alps
2e REG: Sixth legionnaire dies after avalanche in the Alps
2e REG: Tribute to the six killed legionnaires

—