Okanogan County Assistant Chief severely burned over the weekend

Information and photo released by Okanogan County Emergency Management

Christian Johnson, Assistant Chief of the Okanogan Volunteer Fire Department, suffered serious injuries while on the Spring Coulee Fire on Sunday. He has second and third degree burns over 60% of his body.

Christian is currently in a medically-induced coma at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. They are trying to stabilize him so they can proceed with skin graft surgery. He will be looking at a minimum of 2-3 months in the ICU.

Christian has served his country as a sergeant in the Army, and was deployed with the Washington State National Guard from November 2003- May 2005 in Baghdad. He retired after 22 years of service and has volunteered for the Okanogan Fire Department for 20 years.

Christian is a selfless man, who is always willing to help those in need, and never asks for anything in return. We are now asking for your help to make this long journey a little easier for him and his family. Any amount of donations are greatly appreciated and will go towards helping the family with travel, housing, food, etc.

If anyone would like to make a donation to his recovery, they may use the GO FUND ME account below or make a donation to: Christian Johnson Donation Account at North Cascades Bank, PO Box 672, Okanogan WA 98840.

Spring Coulee Fire Information

The Spring Coulee Fire started approximately at 4:00 pm, Sunday, September 1, 2019 just off B & O Road North between Fletcher Loop Road and Spring Coulee Road.

At approximately 5:30 pm, after burning nearly 142 acres, the Spring Coulee Fire was contained and in mop-up stage.

The Department of Natural Resources monitored the fire through the night and continued mop-up operations on Monday. Their fire investigators are currently investigating the cause of the fire.