Charges filed after crash that killed two firefighters

Nine firefighters traveling in a second crew carrier were stopped 30 miles down the highway, restrained with zip ties, and questioned individually.

Michael Allen Johnson
Michael Allen Johnson. Anoka County jail photo.

(Originally published at 7:22 a.m. MDT August 29. Updated at 2:52 p.m August 30, 2016)

The driver of the crew carrier that crashed August 27 near Blaine, Minnesota killing two firefighters has been charged with a crime. Michael Allen Johnson, 28, was arrested the day of the accident and booked into Anoka County jail. He was charged with two counts of criminal vehicular homicide operating a motor vehicle in a grossly negligent manner.

The two deceased firefighters were identified Sunday by the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community as James F. Shelifoe, Jr., 23, of Baraga Michigan, and Alan J. Swartz, 25, of Baraga, Michigan.

Monday evening WLUC reported more information about Mr. Johnson based on a copy of the criminal complaint. Here are some of the key points according to their article and an AP report:

  • The crash occurred at approximately 3 p.m. CST on Saturday, August 27.
  • Mr. Johnson said he woke up on Friday, August 26th, at approximately 11:00 a.m. and had not slept since then at the time of the crash, aside from a forty-five minute nap during the early morning hours of August 27th.
  • He said he had used marijuana hours before the crash.
  • He admitted to having used cocaine two days earlier. (Blood tests are pending.)
  • Officers stated that Mr. Johnson appeared impaired and was acting combative at the scene of the accident.
  • He told investigators he fell asleep while driving and woke up to a passenger yelling. He veered off the right side of the road, overcorrected to the left, and struck the cable barrier between the southbound and northbound lanes of the freeway.

In the video above the reporter says:

Two hours after the crash a second Beartown truck carrying nine more firefighters was stopped in Bloomington. Their hands restrained behind their backs they sat along a curb, individually questioned, and left on their way.

Bloomington is about 30 miles from Blaine, Minnesota where the crash occurred.

crash scene firefighters
The crash scene. From the WCCO video.

ABC News reported that a witness saw the truck drive past him at about 80 to 90 mph in a 70 mph zone shortly before the crash, according to the complaint.

The passenger compartment on the crew carrier separated from the truck’s chassis when the vehicle rolled.

Seven firefighters in the crew carrier were injured, including Mr. Johnson. All are expected to recover. The Minnesota State Patrol said in a statement:

The truck was southbound on I-35W near 95th Avenue. The truck left the roadway for an unknown reason, struck the median cable barriers, and rolled. A total of nine people were in the vehicle.

There were 11 other firefighters in two other vehicles traveling in the convoy but the truck that crashed had become separated from the other two. All are part of the Beartown Fire Crew from the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community in the upper Peninsula of Michigan. The firefighters were en route to the Box Canyon Fire in Utah.