Valcartier, 30 July 2014 – Members of the RMR Family joined victims and families in remembering the 1974 grenade explosion at the Cadet Summer Training Centre at Canadian Forces Base Valcartier, during a memorial ceremony today on the base. Both Commanding Officers of the two RMR Cadet Corps (Captain Brooker of 2806 and Captain Dover of 2862) were on hand for the ceremony, accompanied by their officers, Cadets, staff, and the RMR’s Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel (a former 2806 Cadet himself).
On July 30, 1974, an accidental grenade explosion at the Valcartier Army Cadet Summer Training Centre claimed the lives of six cadets and wounded dozens more. While the incident occurred many years ago, Canadians have not forgotten. A memorial ceremony led by former CAF members and cadets who were present at the training centre in 1974 is held annually to commemorate this tragedy.
Two members of the RMR Cadet Corps # 2862 (Westmount) were killed in the explosion: Claude Charbonneau and Othon Mangos. The families of the victims also participated in a second ceremony to unveil a refurbished memorial within the lines of the Valcartier Cadet Camp.
Gerry Fostaty, another RMR Cadet (2806, Pointe-Claire) who was an 18-year-old sergeant that summer and one of the first on the scene after the explosion, has written a book about the day and aftermath. He was one of the RMR’s on the scene today in Valcartier for the memorial service and was proudly wearing his Regimental tie. His book can be purchased from Amazon, Indigo, or most other book retailers.