• About
    • About Us
    • What We Cover
  • Advertise
    • Advertise
    • Our Advertisers
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Send News
  • Subscribe

Oak Ridge Today

  • Home
  • Sign in
  • News
    • Business
    • Community
    • Education
    • Government
    • Health
    • Police and Fire
    • U.S. Department of Energy
    • Weather
  • Sports
    • High School
    • Middle School
    • Recreation
    • Rowing
    • Youth
  • Entertainment
    • Arts
    • Dancing
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Television
    • Theater
  • Premium Content
  • Obituaries
  • Classifieds

 

Oak Ridge: 4,000 lose power, 70 homes damaged

Posted at 1:05 pm June 11, 2014
By John Huotari 1 Comment

Wadsworth Circle Home Tree

One of two trees that fell on a home on West Wadsworth Circle. The second tree, visible on the ground in the background, punched a hole in the roof and displaced a mother, grandmother, and two children.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 2:40 p.m.

Roughly 4,000 customers lost power in the Tuesday evening storm, and about 70 damaged homes will require repairs by an electrician before power can be restored, an Oak Ridge official said Wednesday morning.

Oak Ridge Electric Director Jack Suggs said he doesn’t recall ever having 70 homes damaged in one storm, although the Electric Department has experienced worse storms when many utility poles were broken. But the brief, fierce Tuesday storm, which brought severe winds and driving rain, was significant in terms of its damage to homes and its far-reaching nature, from Blair Road on the west end of town to east Oak Ridge and beyond—into Clinton and Anderson County, Suggs said.

“It was pretty widespread,” Suggs said.

Janet Bowker on Plymouth Circle and Storm Debris

Janet Bowker, left, walks through debris on Plymouth Circle in front of her home, where a tree fell into her bedroom during the Tuesday evening storm. Her home is at right but not visible in this picture. There were no injuries, but Bowker does not have power now.

 

The storm, which ripped through Oak Ridge at about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, left a trail of debris: scattered branches and limbs, broken trees, fallen power lines, and damaged buildings and homes. It also triggered a flood of calls to the city’s 911 call dispatch center.

About 500 customers remained without power around noon Wednesday, including the 70 damaged homes.

Suggs said Electric Department crews had reduced the number of customers without power to about 2,000 by midnight and 1,000 by 3 a.m. Wednesday. But all that information is preliminary, Suggs said.

The Oak Ridge Electric Department is now working 24 hours a day to restore power, and city crews have been augmented by contractors. There have been line crews, tree crews, some employees manning a phone bank and others planning the work, and scouts to find and identify problems.

“Everyone in the department has worked to restore power,” Suggs said early Wednesday morning. “Many, including the department’s secretaries, came in and worked until long after 1. Engineering personnel worked late into the night also. Those who were not asked to come in immediately were held off so that we could continue a 24-hour restoration operation without endangering our people.”

Oak Ridge Electric Department on Plymouth Circle

The Oak Ridge Electric Department responds to Plymouth Circle, where a large oak tree fell on a house and knocked utility lines to the ground.

 

Suggs said it took 50 years to build the city’s electrical system, and a significant part of it was destroyed on Tuesday.

Suggs said crews are working first on the largest outage areas, trying to restore power to as many people as possible. He hopes to restore power to those who are capable of receiving it by 8 or 9 p.m. Wednesday.

In the meantime, Suggs advised residents who don’t have power to keep their refrigerators and freezers closed to avoid ruining the groceries inside.

“Do not check on the food,” Suggs said.

West Oak Ridge Storm Damage

The storm damaged buildings, including this shopping center in west Oak Ridge. (Photo by Valarie Bilotta Emery)

 

He said the Electric Department continues to get calls of fallen power lines as well.

“Stay away from downed power lines,” Suggs said.

He said the 500 customers still without power are probably in seven to eight small areas, including, for example, Highland View, the top end of Newport, and Hunter Circle.

“They’re really scattered in pockets,” Suggs said.

Anderson County and Clinton

WYSH Radio in Clinton reported that the storm destroyed the Passtime Garage downtown, slightly injuring two people working on a van inside the building. Both of those men were treated for their injuries at area hospitals.

Owner Dustin Byrd said insurance will cover the damage, but he was most thankful no one was seriously injured, WYSH reported.

Passtime Garage Storm Damage

Passtime Garage on South Main Street in Clinton was damaged by a fast-moving storm and severe winds early Tuesday evening. (Photo courtesy WYSH Radio/WGAP Radio)

 

In fact, across the region, no serious injuries were reported.

On Lake City Highway, a tractor trailer was flipped onto its side by high winds, slightly injuring the driver.

A tree—one of many that came down across the county—reportedly fell on a mobile home in Claxton, trapping a woman inside. She was uninjured.

Damage ranged from shingles being torn off roofs, and siding stripped from buildings, to limbs and tress on cars and structures. Downed trees caused widespread power outages throughout the Clinton Utilities Board service area.  At the peak of the outages, more than 6,000 customers were without power, and CUB crews have been out in force since the storms passed through, working to restore power, WYSH said.

“If you see those crews out working, please slow down and give them plenty of room as they continue their repairs,” the radio station said.

The National Weather Service is expected to be in the area today (Wednesday) surveying damage to determine if it was caused by a tornado or simply straight-line winds.

Clinton Power Outages on June 10

A map of the Clinton Utilities Board power outages at about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday. (Image courtesy CUB)

 

Roane County

In Roane County, WYSH and BBB-TV, Ch. 12, reported that the most serious storm damage was said to be in the city of Kingston, although there were widespread reports of power outages and downed trees across the county.

The Kingston damage centered around the area of 3rd and 4th Streets, where power lines and poles were brought down, and several buildings were damaged on Kentucky Street as well.

The sign at the Taco Bell in Kingston was blown apart, with debris flying some 100 yards away, and there was also damage to the roof at the Raceway gas station. No serious injuries were reported, and the NWS is expected to be in Roane County today to assess the damage, WYSH said.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Filed Under: Government, Oak Ridge, Slider, Top Stories, Weather, Weather Tagged With: Anderson County, BBB-TV, Clinton, Clinton Utilities Board, CUB, damaged homes, Dustin Byrd, electricity, Highland View, Hunter Circle, Jack Suggs, Janet Bowker, Kingston, Lake City Highway, National Weather Service, NWS, Oak Ridge Electric Department, Passtime Garage, Plymouth Circle, power, power lines, rain, repairs, Roane County, severe winds, storm, Wadsworth Circle, WYSH Radio

Advertisements

 



Join the club!

If you appreciate our work, please consider subscribing. Besides helping us, your subscription will give you access to our premium content.

Some of our stories are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our members—advertisers, subscribers, and sponsors.

But some are premium content, available only to members. Those are in-depth, investigative, or exclusive stories that are available only on Oak Ridge Today. They generally require significant time to report, write, and publish.

You can subscribe for as little as $5 per month.

You can read more about your options here.

We currently offer five primary subscription options to readers, and they include benefits.

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here.

If you prefer to send a check for a subscription or donation, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

Thank you for your consideration and for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support.

Commenting Guidelines

We welcome comments, but we ask you to follow a few guidelines:

1) Please use your real name, including last name. Please also use a valid e-mail address.
2) Be civil. Don't insult others, attack their character, or get personal.
3) Stick to the issues.
4) No profanity.
5) Keep your comments to a reasonable length and to a reasonable number per article.

We reserve the right to remove any comments that violate these guidelines. Comments held for review, usually from those posting for the first time, may not post if they violate these guidelines. Thank you for your patience and understanding. Thank you also for reading Oak Ridge Today and for participating in the discussion.

More information is available here.

Comments

  1. Linda Wells Mabry says

    June 11, 2014 at 10:47 pm

    I want to give a HUGE “Thank You” to everyone who worked Monday night. You all did a Hell of a good job. I saw the trucks out all night and saw what you had to deal with. Thank you.
    The next person that claims the schools are the “Jewel of the City” I would like to remind th what a great bunch of City employees we have and our first responders are too notch! Without them the school would not function!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

More Government News

Anderson County Courthouse

Anderson County government offices closed Monday, Tuesday

Anderson County government offices will be closed Monday and Tuesday, July 3-4, to observe Independence Day. The offices will re-open at 8 a.m. Wednesday morning, July 5, a press release said. The Anderson County … [Read More...]

Fireworks show, music on July 4

Oak Ridge's annual fireworks show is scheduled to being at dark Tuesday, around 9:45 p.m. on Independence Day, July 4. There will be music before the show. The celebration, which is sponsored by the City of Oak Ridge, … [Read More...]

Library announces check-out changes

Ten days after celebrating renovations, the Oak Ridge Public Library has announced changes to its check-out procedures and policies that take effect on Saturday, July 1. Among the changes: The City of Oak Ridge … [Read More...]

USA Cycling Time Trial National Championships on Thursday

Oak Ridge Traffic Impacts Oak Ridge will host its fifth annual USA Cycling Individual Time Trial National Championships on Thursday, June 22. Elite cyclists nationwide will converge on the city, showcasing their skill … [Read More...]

Oak Ridgers celebrate library renovations

A standing-room-only crowd attended the grand re-opening celebration of renovations to the East Wing of the Oak Ridge Public Library on Tuesday. The renovations include a brand-new Children’s Room and bathrooms that … [Read More...]

More Government

Recent Posts

  • ORPD investigating fatal crash on South Illinois
  • SNS on hiatus for upgrade
  • County sees increase in infant deaths due to unsafe sleeping practices
  • ASAP of Anderson welcomes new executive director
  • Briceville Fire Department celebrates new station
  • Officers searching for suspect in fatal shooting
  • Oak Ridge to host movie premiere of ‘Oppenheimer’
  • Oak Ridge Schools to host panel discussion, documentary screening for ‘Oppenheimer’
  • Sam Bush to headline Summer Sessions concert
  • Anderson County government offices closed Monday, Tuesday

Search Oak Ridge Today

About Us

About Oak Ridge Today
What We Cover

How To

Advertise
Subscribe

Contact Us

Contact Oak Ridge Today

Copyright © 2023 Oak Ridge Today