Douglas County Officials Identify Orondo Man Killed In Chelan Hills Fire

Authorities in Douglas County are releasing the name of a man who died in a wildfire nearly two months ago.

The Douglas County Sheriff's Office says 69-year-old Robert M. Lister of Orondo was found on July 5 inside a vehicle within an area where the Chelan Hills Fire had burned the previous evening.

Investigators say Lister's vehicle was destroyed by the fire after apparently sliding off the roadway, likely while he was in the act of attempting to evacuate the area.

Lister was discovered after his family had notified the Sheriff's Office that he lived within an evacuation zone attached to the wildfire and hadn't been heard from since the blaze sparked on the evening of July 4.

The Douglas County Coroner's Office worked to confirm Lister's identity, since his remains were not readily identifiable after being found inside the vehicle.

Lister is the only known casualty of the blaze, which also injured several firefighters, destroyed at least 19 homes and over 100 outbuildings, and charred nearly 10,000 acres in McNeil Canyon and other parts of northwestern Douglas County.