CHEIRY — 1994 · Major Tragedy
The Solar Temple Deaths
On 5 October 1994, authorities responding to fires at properties of the Order of the Solar Temple in the village of Cheiry, canton of Fribourg, and at Granges-sur-Salvan in Valais found a total of 48 bodies: 23 at Cheiry and 25 at Salvan. Days earlier five people had died at Morin-Heights in Quebec, Canada. Some of the deaths were found to be suicides, while others were killings of members and former members regarded as "traitors". Both leaders of the group were among the dead at Salvan. Further mass deaths linked to the order followed in France in 1995 and Canada in 1997.
- Date
- 1994
- Place
- Cantons of Fribourg and Valais, Switzerland, Cheiry, CH
- Category
- Major Tragedy
- Case Status
- Closed
- Coordinates
- 46.7500, 6.8700 ↗
Timeline of Events
- Early October 1994Five people died at Morin-Heights in Canada.
- 5 October 199448 bodies were found after fires at Cheiry and Salvan.
- December 1995Sixteen more members died in the Vercors, France.
- 1997Further deaths occurred at Saint-Casimir, Canada.
Sources
- Wikipedia — 1994 Solar Temple massacres en.wikipedia.org ↗
- PubMed — The challenge of identification following the tragedy of the Solar Temple (Cheiry/Salvan) pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
- swissinfo.ch — Parallels between the Montreux deaths and the OTS tragedy swissinfo.ch ↗
- Wikipedia
- PubMed (Forensic Science International)
- swissinfo.ch
Source grade A: several independent sources, at least one an official record or reference work. If you spot a mistake or something missing, report it with "Suggest a correction" in the app.
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🕯️ This record was prepared with respect, in memory of those who lost their lives.