Oak Ridge Today

ACSD investigating reported robbery

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Information from WYSH Radio

An Anderson County man reported that he was robbed by two men early Saturday morning.

According to the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, Eric Davis was returning to his Dutch Valley Road home after work at around 6 a.m. Saturday when he said he spotted a man bent over in the gravel driveway leading to his house. When he stopped, a second man allegedly grabbed him, assaulted him, and put him in a headlock while the second bandit stole his wallet, which contained about $600.

Davis said both men had something covering their heads and was unable to give a physical description of his assailants, but the ACSD report indicates he followed the suspects’ getaway vehicle long enough to get the tag number, which he provided to investigators.

Davis was not seriously injured in the incident.

No one injured in apartment kitchen fire

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Wakefield Road Apartment Fire

No one was injured in a kitchen fire on Monday evening at an apartment complex on Wakefield Road. The fire was reported at about 5:48 p.m. Monday in the apartment at 103D Wakefield Road, which is on the far right of the building pictured above.

 

No one was injured in a kitchen fire on Monday evening in an apartment on Wakefield Road.

The fire was reported at 5:48 p.m. Monday, Oak Ridge Assistant Fire Chief Josh Waldo said. No one was home at the time.

Waldo said firefighters are still trying to determine the cause, but the small fire might have started on the stove. It destroyed the stove and damaged a few cabinets, but was confined to the kitchen and caused minimal smoke damage, Waldo said. He estimated the total damage at about $2,500. [Read more…]

Animal Shelter reopens Tuesday; changes made after distemper outbreak

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Oak Ridge Animal Shelter

The Oak Ridge Animal Shelter on Belgrade Road is pictured above.

Changes have been made, and the Oak Ridge Animal Shelter will reopen Tuesday after a temporary closure last week following the second distemper outbreak this year, city officials said.

The shelter staff will show reporters the changes that have been made to protect animals during an 8:30 a.m. Tuesday tour, and the shelter will open to the public at 11 a.m.

The Oak Ridge Animal Shelter is located at 395 Belgrade Road.

City officials said last week that 51 animals were euthanized because of this month’s distemper outbreak, and the shelter was temporarily closed after canine distemper tests came back positive. All dogs that tested positive were euthanized to prevent the disease from spreading. [Read more…]

Animal Shelter: 51 animals euthanized due to distemper; donations needed

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Oak Ridge Animal Shelter

The Oak Ridge Animal Shelter on Belgrade Road is pictured above.

Fifty-one animals have been euthanized at the Oak Ridge Animal Shelter due to distemper, and donations are needed, Oak Ridge officials said Thursday.

“This has truly been a heartbreaking situation for our staff and volunteers,” the city said in a short statement Thursday afternoon.

The Shelter needs donations of cat litter (non-clumping only), blankets, towels, dry food, and canned food. The donations can be dropped off at the Pet Supplies Plus located at  254 South Illinois Avenue in Oak Ridge from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday.

Adoptable cats and kittens will be also be at Pet Supplies Plus from 12 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, October 25.

“Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we try to heal from this devastating blow,” the city said.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Animal Shelter closed temporarily after canine distemper confirmed

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Oak Ridge Animal Shelter

The Oak Ridge Animal Shelter on Belgrade Road is pictured above.

The Oak Ridge Animal Shelter is temporarily closed after canine distemper tests came back positive.

All dogs in the Animal Shelter that tested positive have been euthanized to prevent the disease from spreading, and the shelter staff is taking measures to prevent widespread infection within the canine community, a City of Oak Ridge press release said. Those preventive measures include cleaning and disinfecting.

The canine distemper tests were conducted by the University Of Tennessee College Of Veterinary Medicine. The Animal Shelter could reopen at 11 a.m. Tuesday, October 28.

The Animal Shelter had a distemper outbreak in March of this year, and the staff started taking precautions by vaccinating all animals on intake, the press release said. However, this time the animal was turned into the Animal Shelter already infected with distemper. [Read more…]

Shelter cleaned after two dogs diagnosed with canine distemper, others tested

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Oak Ridge Animal Shelter

The Oak Ridge Animal Shelter on Belgrade Road is pictured above.

 

Two dogs recently taken in by the Oak Ridge Animal Shelter have been diagnosed with canine distemper. The Animal Shelter was closed Friday and Saturday to allow for thorough cleaning of the facility. Dogs in the shelter are being tested to see if others have contracted the disease.

Test results are expected to be received by today (Tuesday, October 21). If none of the dogs test positive for canine distemper, the Animal Shelter will reopen at 11 a.m. Wednesday.

As a precaution, all animals brought into the Oak Ridge Animal Shelter will be vaccinated on arrival, the Oak Ridge Police Department said in a press release. Dogs with any kind of cough or nasal discharge will be kept separate from dogs available for adoption. [Read more…]

Two drivers injured in head-on, rollover crash on Turnpike

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Oak Ridge Turnpike Crash at West Lincoln Road

Oak Ridge police say the westbound 2013 Ford Focus, left, crossed the median and struck a 1996 Ford Ranger head-on in the eastbound lanes of Oak Ridge Turnpike near West Lincoln Road on Sunday night. The pickup rolled over into the ditch on the south side of the Turnpike, and one of the back wheels of the upside-down Ford Ranger is visible at right.

 

Note: This story was updated at 3:13 p.m.

Two drivers were injured in a head-on rollover crash on Oak Ridge Turnpike on Sunday night.

The crash was reported at about 10:54 p.m. Sunday near West Lincoln Road.

The Oak Ridge Police Department said Jeffery Wooten, 40, of Oak Ridge was traveling west on the four-lane Turnpike in a 2013 Ford Focus when the car crossed the median and struck a 1996 Ford Ranger head-on. The pickup was driven by Dexter Selby, 19, of Crossville. [Read more…]

Car once owned by ‘Sound of Music’ actor catches fire in OR

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Glenn Bell Car Fire Sound of Music

A 1965 Studebaker station wagon once owned by Dan Truhitte, who played the German officer Rolfe in “The Sound of Music” in 1965, caught fire in Oak Ridge on Friday. Above Oak Ridge Fire Department firefighter Steven London, left, sprays water on the bottom side of the four-door wagon. At right is ORFD firefighter Sandra Sila-Massengill.

 

A classic car once owned by an actor in “The Sound of Music” movie caught fire in Oak Ridge on Friday afternoon.

Oak Ridge resident Glenn Bell, who now owns the car, smelled gas as he left a doctor’s appointment at Jackson Square Plaza in the green 1965 Studebaker four-door station wagon early Friday afternoon. Bell decided to head home.

As he turned onto Tyler Road from Oak Ridge Turnpike, he saw smoke under the hood and dash, and he jumped out. The car rolled a short distance to the intersection of Tyler and Talmeda roads. [Read more…]

Sheriff’s Department asks for help finding missing man

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Michael Miller Missing Person

 

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department is asking for the public’s help in locating a missing person, Michael David Miller, 42. Miller was last seen on Sunday, October 5, at his parent’s home in Claxton.

He exchanged text messages with a friend on Tuesday, October 7, but has not been heard from since.

Miller is described as 5 feet, 7 inches tall, and 150 pounds. He has blond hair and hazel eyes. [Read more…]

Fallen tree branch causes small electric line fire

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Electric Line Fire on North Seneca Road

A fallen tree limb knocked down a power line on Friday night, starting a small fire in a yard on North Seneca Road.

 

A fallen tree limb knocked down a power line from a utility pole on Friday night, starting a small electric fire in a yard at 150 North Seneca Road.

The Oak Ridge police and fire departments blocked the road until the Oak Ridge Electric Department was able to respond and shut off the power.

The fire was reported at about 11:30 p.m. Friday. It burned for about an hour but did not spread, and firefighters and police officers kept an eye on it while they waited for the power crew.

See another picture here:

[Read more…]

Oak Ridge fire chief selected to serve on state commission

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Darryl Kerley

Darryl Kerley

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam has announced the appointment of Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley to the Commission on Firefighting Personnel Standards and Education as a representative of the Tennessee Fire Chief’s Association, the Tennessee Fire Safety Inspectors Association, and the Tennessee Fireman’s Association.

The appointment is effective immediately and runs through July 31, 2020, a press release said.

Kerley has more than 37 years’ experience in fire and emergency services, serving in various capacities for several East Tennessee agencies, including fire chief for the Seymour Volunteer Fire Department, rescue technician and diver for the Knoxville Rescue Squad, and fire chief for the U.S Department of Energy at the K-25 Gaseous Diffusion plant in Oak Ridge.

In a letter to Kerley, Haslam stated: “I consider it very important to ensure that Tennessee’s boards and commissions are filled with the most dedicated and qualified citizens. I believe your participation is certain to leave a positive impact on this board and the work it does.” [Read more…]