Oak Ridge Today

Vacuum helps crews remove contaminated sludge, debris at ORNL

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The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management now has a powerful, trailer-mounted vacuum for cleaning and maintaining the important liquid and gaseous waste operations at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo courtesy DOE EM)

The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management now has a powerful, trailer-mounted vacuum for cleaning and maintaining the important liquid and gaseous waste operations at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo courtesy DOE EM)

 

Federal site cleanup workers reported in August that they had begun removing contaminated sludge and debris from tanks, sumps, and valve boxes at Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s liquid and gaseous waste operations using a powerful, new trailer-mounted vacuum.

The equipment has already enhanced safety and operational efficiency, according to the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management.

“Without the vacuum, personnel would be required to fully dress in personal protective equipment and remove the sludge and debris with shovels and buckets,” DOE said. “In addition to being closer to contaminated materials in confined spaces, workers would face an increased chance of slips and falls while climbing in and out of slippery areas in the protective suits.”

Using the vacuum technology has eliminated the risk of heat stress for employees, who would otherwise perform manual labor in protective suits during the hot Tennessee summer, DOE said. [Read more…]

ORNL consortium working on nuclear reactors names director

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David Kropaczek directs the Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, U.S. a Department of Energy Innovation Hub headquartered at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo by ORNL)

David Kropaczek directs the Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, U.S. a Department of Energy Innovation Hub headquartered at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo by ORNL)

 

A consortium that is based at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and works on next-generation commercial nuclear reactors has named a director.

David J. Kropaczek will lead the Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, which is based at ORNL, a U.S. Department of Energy laboratory.

CASL, which launched in 2010 as DOE’s first Energy Innovation Hub, has brought together the nation’s supercomputing facilities and leading nuclear experts and institutions to pursue an aggressive 10-year mission—to predict the performance of existing and next-generation commercial nuclear reactors through comprehensive, science-based modeling, and simulation, a press release said. [Read more…]

Labor Day Concert: Dale Pendley retiring as conductor

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Dale Pendley and the Oak Ridge Community Band are pictured above in this submitted photo.

Dale Pendley and the Oak Ridge Community Band are pictured above in this submitted photo.

 

Submitted

As summer comes to a unofficial close on Labor Day, it is official that Dale Pendley’s many years of outstanding service as conductor of the Oak Ridge Community Band from 2001 to 2018 comes to a close as he heads into retirement. The Community Band is inviting all Oak Ridgers and area residents, particularly former Community Band members, former band students of Pendley during the years he worked as an educator in the Oak Ridge Schools, family, and friends to come on down to A.K. Bissell Park on Monday, September 3, at 7 p.m. to join with band members in giving Dale Pendley a warm send-off and many best wishes for his retirement.

Dale Pendley has been with the Oak Ridge Community Band since 1996, originally as a member of the trombone section, later becoming assistant conductor in 1998, and he was appointed the band conductor in 2001 after the retirement of former director Steve “Doc” Combs. Pendley is a graduate of Tyner High School in Chattanooga and received his bachelor and master’s degrees from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. He taught in the Knoxville City Schools and started the band program in the Grainger County Schools. From 1980 to 2012, he taught band in Oak Ridge Schools at both Jefferson Middle School and Oak Ridge High School. In addition to teaching and conducting, Pendley has performed with the University of Tennessee Trombone Choir, the Babahatchie Community Band, the Oak Ridge and Knoxville Symphony Orchestras, and numerous jazz and dance bands. Dale and his wife Rita have three grown children and one grandchild. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge hosts first-ever Fall Break Junior Camp

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Fall Break Camp Flyer 2018

The City of Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department has announced its first-ever Fall Break Junior Camp. Registration will begin on Tuesday, September 4. Camp will be held October 1-5.

Sign-ups are open to campers from kindergarten up to 11 years old, a press release said. Space is limited and the camp will fill up quickly, so early registration is recommended, the release said.

Walk-in registration with cash or check payment will be available during regular Civic Center hours (8 a.m. to 10 p.m.). Walk-in registrants should complete an online profile/account before coming in to register. Staff will complete the registration at the front desk. [Read more…]

Youth Advisory Board planning job fair for teens

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The Oak Ridge Youth Advisory Board is planning a job fair for teenagers on Wednesday, September 12. It’s scheduled from 1:45 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. in the Oak Ridge High School Café.

The event will introduce students to possible job opportunities and provide them with information on resume writing and interviewing skills. The event will also serve as an excellent opportunity for vendors to meet potential employees, a press release said.

Vendors that have already signed up include: Big Ed’s Pizza, Kroger, ASAP, RecruitWise, the Boys and Girls Club of Oak Ridge, and the City of Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department. Additional vendors are expected. [Read more…]

Rocky Top woman charged with homicide in death of 83-year-old

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Christy Viola Comer

Christy Viola Comer

 

Note: This story was updated at 1:20 p.m. September 3.

A Rocky Top woman has been arrested and charged with homicide in the death of an 83-year-old man, state authorities said.

Christy Viola Comer, 37, was arrested by special agents from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, with help from several local law enforcement agencies, a TBI press release said.

On Friday morning, authorities found the body of J.C. Copeland outside of his home in the 600 block of Jacksboro Avenue in Rocky Top. TBI agents started investigating at the request of Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark and with help from the Rocky Top Police Department, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, and Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force. [Read more…]

TVA seeks public comments on dry ash storage at Bull Run

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The Tennessee Valley Authority's Bull Run Fossil Plant is pictured above in Claxton on Monday, Aug. 27, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Tennessee Valley Authority’s Bull Run Fossil Plant is pictured above in Claxton on Monday, Aug. 27, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Tennessee Valley Authority is accepting public comments on proposed changes to plans for converting from wet to dry handling and storage of coal ash and other materials at its Bull Run Fossil Plant near Claxton, across the Clinch River from Oak Ridge.

The proposed changes are detailed in a draft supplemental environmental assessment posted at www.tva.gov/nepa, a press release said. This supplemental assessment will look at proposed environmental impacts of a revised plan to close and partially remove wet ash impoundments on site at Bull Run.

“TVA plans to repurpose the stilling impoundment and a portion of the fly ash impoundment for use as process water basins,” the press release said. [Read more…]

Explore Oak Ridge president resigns

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Marc DeRose

Marc DeRose

Marc DeRose, president of Explore Oak Ridge, announced Thursday that he plans to resign from the position next month to pursue other career goals.

DeRose served as president of Explore Oak Ridge, the city’s Convention and Visitors Bureau, for four years, a press release said. He plans to remain in the position until September 30 to assist in the search and transition to a new president.

“I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to serve Oak Ridge as president of Explore Oak Ridge,” DeRose said in a press release. “The team at Explore Oak Ridge, the board of directors, and our partners at the City of Oak Ridge were a critical part of every success Explore Oak Ridge experienced over the past several years. I’m confident that I’ll be leaving the organization in exceptional hands. The decision to leave Explore Oak Ridge was difficult and required a lot of consideration by my family and me.” [Read more…]

Tennessee Avenue road reconstruction update

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Submitted

The Oak Ridge Public Works Department is providing a revised update on the Tennessee Avenue reconstruction project. Temporary closure of the Tyler Road intersection with West Tennessee Avenue will now begin on Tuesday, September 4, 2018, after the Labor Day weekend. (It was originally planned to begin this week.)

As the Public Works Department announced last week, phase one of the project will need to be extended just past Tyler Road, instead of Michigan Avenue. Adams and Sons Inc., the city’s contractor for the project, has advised that the intersection will remain closed for approximately one week. Traffic will be directed around the affected area.

Once the waterline replacement portion is complete, the intersection will be re-opened. After the water main installation is completed, reconstruction of the roadway will commence. [Read more…]

Center for Oak Ridge Oral History seeks new interviews

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Oak Ridge Public Library

The Oak Ridge Public Library is pictured above.

The Oak Ridge Public Library is seeking new interviews as part of the Center for Oak Ridge Oral History project. More than 800 oral history entries have already been logged, but additional stories are needed from those who experienced Oak Ridge as children.

COROH’s main focus has been the Manhattan Project era of Oak Ridge’s history, from late 1942 to the end of World War II in August 1945. Interviewees are asked about what it was like to live in the “Secret City.” As the project continues, staff and volunteers will be looking to the second generation of Oak Ridgers in order to record their memories as well. [Read more…]

Sprinkler system extinguishes fire at assisted living facility

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Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge

Image courtesy City of Oak Ridge

 

Submitted

On Friday, August 24, at about 12:38 a.m., the Oak Ridge Fire Department responded to a fire alarm caused by water flow from sprinklers at NHC Healthcare on Laboratory Road.

The first unit on scene reported that an employee saw fire coming from a clothes dryer and then saw water flow in the dryer area. The engine company controlled the water from the sprinkler head, closed gas, and disconnected power from all three dryers. No injuries were reported, and no fire damage was noted in or around the dryer. Fire department personnel also mitigated the water from the sprinkler head activation. The facility was back to normal operation within a few hours.

This was the second incident worked by the Oak Ridge Fire Department in just 24 hours that involved the successful use of a life-saving device. [Read more…]

AC Chamber president named TN Chamber executive of year

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The Tennessee Chamber of Commerce Executives named Rick Meredith, president of the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce, the Chamber Executive of the Year at an annual meeting in Clarksville on Thursday, Aug. 23, 2018. The award was presented by Suzie Lusk, associate vice president of the Tennessee Chamber of Commerce. (Photo by Anderson County Chamber of Commerce)

The Tennessee Chamber of Commerce Executives named Rick Meredith, president of the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce, the Chamber Executive of the Year at an annual meeting in Clarksville on Thursday, Aug. 23, 2018. The award was presented by Suzie Lusk, associate vice president of the Tennessee Chamber of Commerce. (Photo by Anderson County Chamber of Commerce)

 

Anderson County Chamber of Commerce President Rick Meredith was named Tennessee Chamber Executive of the Year this month, a press release said.

Meredith, who also serves on the Anderson County Commission, received the honor from the Tennessee Chamber of Commerce Executives at an annual meeting held in Clarksville, Tennessee, on Thursday, August 23, the press release said. TCCE is a statewide chamber professional association that identifies the most effective chamber professional who has made a significant difference in a local Tennessee chamber, the release said. [Read more…]