Fort Stewart, Georgia-based Chemical Corps officer selected for 75th Ranger Regiment

By Walter T. Ham IVJune 23, 2023

CBRN Best Warrior Competition
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Christopher Coughlin (left) from the 25th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (CBRNE) Company (Technical Escort), participates in the CBRN Best Warrior Competition on Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. A native of Tacoma, Washington, Coughlin was recently selected for the 75th Ranger Regiment. (Photo Credit: Courtesy photo) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT STEWART, Ga. – A team leader from a U.S. Army Chemical Corps unit achieved his life-long goal of serving in the elite 75th Ranger Regiment.

U.S. Army 1st Lt. Christopher A. Coughlin from the 25th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (CBRNE) Company (Technical Escort) was selected for the U.S. Army’s premier direct-action raid unit.

The 25th CBRNE Company “Sentinels” are part of the 83rd CBRN Battalion, 48th Chemical Brigade and 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (CBRNE) Command, the U.S. military’s premier all hazards formation. From 19 bases in 16 states, Soldiers and Army civilians from the 20th CBRNE Command take on the world’s most dangerous hazards in support of joint, interagency and allied operations.

CBRNE Response Teams tackle a variety of challenging missions, including initial sampling, limited decontamination, packaging, escorting, detection, munitions assessment, explosive threat mitigation and contaminated sensitive site exploitation.

U.S. Army 1st Lt. Christopher Coughlin
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Christopher Coughlin from the 25th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (CBRNE) Company (Technical Escort), participates in the CBRN Best Warrior Competition on Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. A native of Tacoma, Washington, Coughlin was recently selected for the 75th Ranger Regiment. (Photo Credit: Courtesy photo) VIEW ORIGINAL

A native of Tacoma, Washington, who grew up around West Point, New York, Coughlin is a military brat and his father served as an Army Cavalry and Military Intelligence officer.

After graduating from the Chemical Basic Officers Course, Ranger school and Airborne school and serving as a brigade operations officer, Coughlin wanted to gain more CBRN experience.

“That’s when I received an invite to 25th CBRN Company,” said Coughlin. “This unit offered me the chance to get key development time and lots of technical chemical experience.”

At the company, Coughlin served as a CBRNE Response Team Leader for 14 months and competed in the 2022 Best CBRN Warrior Competition.

March
U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to the 83rd Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division Artillery, 3rd Infantry Division complete the 26.2 mile-long Bataan Memorial Death March on Fort Stewart, Georgia, March 25, 2022. Honoring the memory and sacrifice of the Bataan Death March has inspired thousands of people to endure the memorial version of the March, held annually since 1989 at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. Due to the pandemic, this was the second time the Bataan Memorial Death March was conducted virtually, with organized marches taking place around the world. (Photo Credit: U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Aaron Lundgren) VIEW ORIGINAL

Coughlin was inspired to be an Army Ranger by his grandfather.

“My grandfather fought in the first wave on Normandy as an infantryman and used to tell me stories of his experiences during World War II. One of the stories that stuck with me was when he was moving up off the beach. There was a minefield with a Soldier on the ground, missing his leg. He directed them to avoid one area and to follow the marked route that had been cleared before,” said Coughlin.

“He said that I was here today in part because of those Rangers that led the way off the beach,” said Coughlin. “Since then, being in the 75th Ranger Regiment was one of my main goals and I did everything I could to get there.”

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