Oak Ridge Today

Governor recommends keeping schools closed through end of school year

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Bill Lee

Note: This story was last updated at 6:40 p.m.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has recommended that schools in the state remain closed through the end of the school year.

Lee announced the recommendation during a Wednesday afternoon press conference about the COVID-19 pandemic.

School districts will have the flexibility to carry out critical year-end activities and to start preparing for next year, the governor said.

Tennessee Department of Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn said she appreciated the governor’s recommendation to keep schools closed through the end of the school year in order to protect the health and safety of all Tennesseans.

Schwinn said schools will open next year, and students will enter new grades.

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Governor announces free COVID-19 testing

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Bill Lee

Note: This story was last updated at 6:55 p.m.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee on Wednesday announced that free COVID-19 testing will be available to any Tennessee resident, regardless of whether they have the traditional symptoms: fever, cough, and difficulty breathing.

It’s a significant expansion of what the state has been doing, including of the testing criteria and testing sites and dates, said Tennessee Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Lisa Piercey. She said access is being expanded to the uninsured.

“If you think you need a test, we will test you,” Piercey said during a Wednesday afternoon press conference about the COVID-19 pandemic. “Our clinical understanding of COVID-19 is changing rapidly, and we need every Tennessean who isn’t feeling well, even outside of the traditional COVID-19 symptoms of cough, fever, or difficulty breathing, to come out and get tested.”

Lee said those who might want to get tested include those who aren’t feeling well and those who have come into contact with someone who has had COVID-19.

“We need every Tennesseean who isn’t feeling well to understand that they have access to testing,” Lee said. “When in doubt, get a test.”

COVID-19 is a contagious respiratory illness that can be deadly.

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Drive-through testing starts for COVID-19

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Free drive-through testing for COVID-19 started Wednesday morning, April 15, 2020, in the Oak Ridge High School parking lot. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was last updated at 2:55 p.m.

Drive-through testing for COVID-19 started Wednesday morning in Oak Ridge.

The free testing is being offered by the City of Oak Ridge and Kroger Health. It’s scheduled from Wednesday, April 15, to Friday, April 17, in the Oak Ridge High School parking lot near Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Before testing began Wednesday morning, about 200 appointments had been scheduled over a three-day period, the City of Oak Ridge said.

Up to 250 people can be tested at the drive-through station each day. You do not need to be an Oak Ridge citizen to get tested, the city said.

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CNS president returned to work last week after work-from-home precaution

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Morgan Smith (Photo by CNS)

Morgan Smith, president and chief executive officer of Consolidated Nuclear Security, returned to work last week after temporarily working from home as a precaution. Smith worked from home after he was notified that someone that he had been in brief contact with had reported symptoms that could be related to COVID-19.

But a test of that person was negative for COVID-19, and Smith returned to work on Tuesday, April 7, CNS spokesperson Kathryn King said this week.

Smith had no symptoms, King said.

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Updated: Governor extends ‘stay at home’ order to April 30

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Source: State of Tennessee

Note: This story was last updated at 1:45 p.m. April 14.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee on Monday said he will extend the state’s “stay at home order” through Thursday, April 30.

The order, issued Thursday, April 2, had been scheduled to expire at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, April 14, but it has been extended for 16 days. The order requires Tennessee residents to stay at home unless they are carrying out essential activities. (You can learn more about essential businesses and services in the image above and on this website page.)

The order was extended to the end of the month in cooperation with guidance from the White House, Lee said during a press conference broadcast online on Monday afternoon. The governor’s updated executive order is available here.

Tennessee has had more than 10 days of single-digit growth, rather than double-digit growth, in the number of COVID-19 cases, Lee said, calling the trend encouraging.

“We’re not out of the woods yet, and it could be some time,” Lee said. “But it is clear that the actions that we take at the state, combined with the local level—most importantly with the determination of our citizens and the bravery of our first responders and our health care workers on the front lines—those efforts have saved countless lives across Tennessee, and for that we are thankful.”

The governor’s new executive order, Executive Order 27, extends temporary social distancing and the stay-at-home provisions of previous executive orders that, among other things:

  • prohibited social gatherings of 10 or more people;
  • told restaurants, bars, and similar food and drink establishments to offer take-out or delivery options only;
  • directed gyms and fitness or exercise centers to temporarily close and suspend in-person services;
  • restricted visitation in nursing homes, retirement homes, and long-term care or assisted-living facilities; and
  • applied to close-contact personal services and entertainment and recreational gathering venues.

The “stay at home” order has been in place as Tennessee, like other states and countries around the world, tries to reduce the spread of COVID-19, a contagious respiratory illness that can be deadly.

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City Council has virtual meeting today

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The Oak Ridge City Council will conduct its regular meeting today (Monday, April 13) as a virtual meeting.

The meeting is being conducted virtually because of the executive orders issued by Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch that require state and city residents to stay home unless they are carrying out essential activities because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The virtual meeting means that City Council members will participate electronically through audio and video conferencing. It will be streamed online on the city’s website and broadcast simultaneously on Comcast Channel 12.

The meeting will start at 7 p.m. Monday, April 13. Residents are asked to watch the meeting through one of the methods provided above, a press release said. The Oak Ridge Municipal Building will not be open to the public.

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Jail population down, mostly due to COVID-19

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Anderson County Detention Facility
The Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton is pictured above.

The number of inmates at the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton has fallen significantly, mostly due to COVID-19, a law enforcement official said last week.

On Wednesday, there were 297 inmates at the jail, which was more than 100 inmates below the average, said Tyler Mayes, director of administrative services for the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office.

“This is predominantly a result of COVID-19,” Mayes said. COVID-19 is a contagious respiratory illness that can be deadly.

No one had tested positive for COVID-19 as of Wednesday, Mayes said.

He said local jails across Tennessee are seeing similar reductions in the number of inmates as low risk, non-violent offenders are being placed on pre-trail supervision or being released on a low bond.

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More than 5,000 COVID-19 cases, 100 deaths reported in Tennessee

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Graph by Ken Mayes (used with permission)

Note: This story was last updated at 2:45 p.m.

More than 5,000 COVID-19 cases have been reported in Tennessee, and more than 100 people have died, state health officials said Saturday.

The Tennessee Department of Health reported 5,114 cases and 101 deaths. The state health department publishes the state case totals at 2 p.m. Central time each day.

The largest percentage of COVID-19 continues to be among patients who are 21 to 30 years old. They account for 1,066 cases, or 21 percent of patients. That age group combined with four others (31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70) account for 4,302 cases, or 83 percent of them.

The average age of COVID-19 patients in Tennessee has been 46. The age range of patients has been between 0 and 99.

COVID-19 is a contagious respiratory illness that can be deadly. In Tennessee, most deaths have occurred among patients who are 61 years and older. They account for 84 deaths, or 83 percent of fatalities.

In Tennessee, about 10.9 percent of patients who have tested positive or are presumed to have tested positive for COVID-19 have been hospitalized (556 of 5,114 cases). The state does not report which counties the hospitalizations occurred in, and it’s not clear how many of the patients remain in the hospital.

About 2 percent of patients have died (101 of 5,114 cases).

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Nine of 11 COVID-19 cases recovered in Anderson County

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Nine of the 11 COVID-19 cases in Anderson County had recovered as of Thursday, Mayor Terry Frank said Friday.

“This is more positive news for recoveries,” Frank said. “Keep up the great work all!”

No additional information has been reported about the Anderson County patients, including their general location within the county, their ages, or genders.

There has been one death from COVID-19 in Anderson County.

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City, Kroger Health to offer drive-through COVID-19 testing

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The City of Oak Ridge and Kroger Health will host free drive-through testing for COVID-19 in Oak Ridge on Wednesday, April 15; Thursday, April 16; and Thursday, April 17, 2020, at the Oak Ridge High School parking lot. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

The City of Oak Ridge and Kroger Health will host free drive-through testing for COVID-19 in Oak Ridge next week.

The testing will be offered on Wednesday, April 15; Thursday, April 16; and Friday, April 17.

On those days, people with symptoms of COVID-19, a contagious respiratory illness that can be deadly, can schedule an appointment through Kroger Health to be screened at the Oak Ridge High School parking lot from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., a press release said.

“It is essential that testing be increased in order to fight this deadly virus,” Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch said in the press release. “This testing will help us determine the degree of spread within the Oak Ridge community and surrounding area. Oak Ridge faces a unique challenge because we host thousands of workers and commuters to travel across our city every day.”

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ORPD, police chief offer $1,000 reward to help identify dead baby boy

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The Oak Ridge Police Department and Police Chief Robin Smith are offering a $1,000 reward for information about the baby boy found dead near the river bank along Melton Lake Greenway on Thursday, March 26, 2020. The Oak Ridge Police Department has named the baby boy “Wyatt,” which means “little warrior,” the city said. On Thursday, April 2, ORPD officers and the Oak Ridge Fire Department set up a memorial in baby Wyatt’s name near the parking area on Melton Lake at Edgemoor Road. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge Police Department and Police Chief Robin Smith are offering a $1,000 reward for information that helps investigators identify the baby boy found dead near the river bank along Melton Lake Greenway on Thursday, March 26.

The reward includes $500 from the ORPD, and Smith will match that with another $500.

Wyatt’s race has not been determined. Police officers have not been able to tell from his physical appearance. His umbilical cord was still attached before he was placed in the water, Smith said in a Facebook video Thursday. A piece of clothing was with Wyatt, although it’s not being described for investigative reasons.

The baby boy is being called Wyatt, or “little warrior,” Smith said.

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Walgreens store, pharmacy were temporarily closed but have re-opened

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The Walgreens store and pharmacy on Oak Ridge Turnpike are pictured above on Friday, April 3, 2020. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was updated at 12:35 p.m.

An employee at the Walgreens store on Oak Ridge Turnpike was being evaluated for COVID-19 last week, and the store and pharmacy were temporarily closed for cleaning but they have since re-opened, a spokesperson said Tuesday.

Several readers have asked about the temporary closing last week. The store appeared to be open Friday evening after readers reported the temporary closure. Some readers reported the closure lasted only a few hours.

On Tuesday, Walgreens said it was notified on Thursday, April 2, that an employee at the Oak Ridge store was being evaluated for COVID-19. The employee has not been in the store since April 1, Walgreens said.

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