Oak Ridge Today

Rocky Top fire grows to 210 acres, 75 percent contained

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The wildfire on a ridge above Rocky Top is pictured above from Interstate 75 on Sunday, Nov. 5, 2023. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The wildfire burning near Rocky Top has grown to an estimated 210 acres and is still 75 percent contained, officials with the Tennessee Department of Forestry said Tuesday.

“Forestry is back on scene this morning,” Anderson County Emergency Management Agency Director Brice Kidwell said Tuesday morning. “They are working to reinforce and clean up the lines they’ve dug over the last few days.”

Kidwell said the Division of Forestry had indicated they planned to do more “back burning” Tuesday to try to fully contain the wildfire that was first reported just after 6 p.m. Saturday. Because of the planned back burning, residents could see more smoke and hazy skies later Tuesday, he said.

[Read more…]

Briceville Fire Department celebrates new station

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Briceville residents turned out Tuesday evening, Sept. 19, 2023, at Briceville Volunteer Fire Department’s ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new fire station, located at 1916 Briceville Highway. (Photo credit: Christopher Brewster Photography)

The Briceville Volunteer Fire Department celebrated its new fire station with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday. The ceremony included local residents and federal, state, and county officials, a press release said.

The path to building the new fire station started years ago, the press release said. In 2019, officials with the United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development announced a grant to the Briceville VFD for $80,700 and a loan of $74,200, along with a county match of $30,000 to “make the dream of a new station a reality.”

But then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and the project hit a number of snags, the press release said. Market disruptions affected bidders; supply chain issues created cost increases and forced reworking of the project; and there was a need to close a funding gap as prices increased.

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Man died after removing wife from fire, trying to rescue her special needs sister

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Law enforcement officials believe that a 64-year-old man removed his wife from a mobile home fire in Anderson County on Wednesday evening and died trying to rescue his special needs sister-in-law, who also died in the fire.

The fire was reported at about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday on Scott Brogan Lane, which is off Old Lake City Highway south of Rocky Top.

The mobile home was engulfed in flames when rescue personnel arrived, and victims were trapped in the home, according to the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department.

The woman who was removed is Marianne Gremillion, said Tyler Mayes, director of administrative services for the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department. She was flown by a medical helicopter to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville after the Wednesday evening fire. [Read more…]

Two people die in fire, one person in critical care

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Two people died in a fire in Anderson County Wednesday evening, and one person is in a critical care unit, authorities said.

The fire was reported at about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday on Scott Brogan Lane, which is off Old Lake City Highway south of Rocky Top.

The house was engulfed in flames when rescue personnel arrived, according to the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department.

One person was flown by a medical helicopter to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville and is in critical care there, said Tyler Mayes, director of administrative services for the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department. [Read more…]

Three small brush fires reported in Briceville

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Information from WYSH Radio

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department was called to a section of New River Highway in Briceville on Friday night after someone reported small brush fires along the side of the road.

A responding deputy located three small brush fires in the 6700 block of New River Highway, which he described as “moving uphill at a slow pace.” No structures, power poles, or any other property were threatened by the fires, which were extinguished by the Briceville Volunteer Fire Department. [Read more…]

Roads closed as all five county fire departments respond to Marlow fire

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A fire was reported at a house at the intersection of Hidden Valley Road and Laurel Road in Marlow late Friday afternoon, Jan. 19, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A fire was reported at a house at the intersection of Hidden Valley Road and Laurel Road in Marlow late Friday afternoon, Jan. 19, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

MARLOW—Laurel Road and Hidden Valley Road were closed Friday evening as all five volunteer fire departments in Anderson County responded to a house fire in Marlow.

The roads were closed because fire trucks are parked in the streets, and water is freezing on the surface of the roadways, said Mark Lucas, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department chief deputy.

The fire was reported at about 4:15 p.m. Friday, Lucas said. All five of the county’s volunteer fire departments responded: Marlow, Briceville, Claxton, Andersonville, and Medford. As far as he knew, all five were still at the fire on Friday evening, Lucas said. [Read more…]

Fire destroys Briceville house

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A fire destroyed a home on Andy’s Ridge Road between Briceville and Rocky Top on Friday evening, authorities said.

Anderson County Sheriff’s Department deputies responded to the call at about 6:51 p.m. Friday.

When Deputy Gregory Hoyt Stanley arrived, he found the house fully engulfed in flames, according to an Anderson County Sheriff’s Department incident report. The Briceville Volunteer Fire Department was already there trying to extinguish the blaze.

The resident of the home told deputies that he had been across the street at his mother’s house for a few minutes when he realized that his house was on fire, according to the incident report. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge donates fire engine to Briceville

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The City of Oak Ridge donated a fire engine to the Briceville Volunteer Fire Department on Nov. 6, 2017, as they awaited delivery of a new fire truck. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)

The City of Oak Ridge donated a fire engine to the Briceville Volunteer Fire Department on Nov. 6, 2017, as they awaited delivery of a new fire truck. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)

 

This story and photos are from the City of Oak Ridge newsletter in November 2017.

The City of Oak Ridge donated a fire engine to the Briceville Volunteer Fire Department earlier this month as they awaited delivery of a new fire truck.

Oak Ridge Fire Department’s new engine was purchased using a stipend from Anderson County as part of a mutual aid program.

ORFD Chief Darryl Kerley and some of his firefighters walked Briceville VFD Chief Jamie Brewster through important details about the truck before they turned it over to the new owner. [Read more…]

Shutting door during bedroom fire likely saved rest of house, firefighter says

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A fire was reported at 612 Johnson Road on the southwest side of Oliver Springs on Thursday morning, March 23, 2017. (Photo by Tom Scott)

A fire was reported at 612 Johnson Road on the southwest side of Oliver Springs on Thursday morning, March 23, 2017. (Photo by Tom Scott)

 

A woman who shut a bedroom door after finding an electrical outlet on fire in a bedroom Thursday morning likely prevented further damage to her house, a firefighter said.

“This woman saved her own house,” said Toby Leinart, Oliver Springs Fire Department lieutenant. Leinart was the incident commander at the fire at the home at 612 Johnson Road on the southwest side of Oliver Springs at about 6:16 a.m. Thursday.

The female resident apparently closed the bedroom door out of instinct, putting the door between herself and danger, Leinart said. Firefighters say a closed door is one of the best pieces of firefighting and lifesaving equipment because it can reduce fire growth and spread, limit damage to a home, and possibly save lives.

“I believe that’s what saved her house today and reduced her damage down to one bedroom,” Leinart said. “I would just about guarantee that’s what saved the rest of her house.”

It’s advice that’s been shared by the Tennessee State Fire Marshal’s Office in a “Close the Door” campaign. Even if you escape from your house during a fire, shut the door when you leave if you can, firefighters say. That will help limit oxygen to the fire. (Firefighters also recommend sleeping with bedroom doors closed if possible, and keeping fire doors closed.) [Read more…]

Oak Ridge volunteer collecting supplies for firefighters

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Oak Ridge resident Tom Giles collects supplies for firefighters at High Places Community Church on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

An Oak Ridge volunteer is collecting supplies for firefighters as they battle forest fires across East Tennessee.

Tom Giles set up three days in the past week at High Places Community Church in Grove Center. He has more donation dates scheduled at the church from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, December 3, and Saturday, December 10.

Here are the items needed: water, Gatorade, small packs of peanut butter crackers and cheese crackers, energy bars, beef jerky, etc. Last Saturday, he said the items should not melt. For example, a chocolate snack could melt in a firefighter’s pocket.

On Friday, November 25, Giles said Oliver Springs Fire Department is providing support to fires burning near Petros, north of Oliver Springs.

“If supplies are depleted, we may need to mobilize a donation date before our December 3 event,” Giles said. “I am in contact with officers from OSFD and will provide updates as needed. Thank you for support.” [Read more…]

No one injured, no homes damaged in brush fire on Foley Hill north of Clinton

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No one was injured and no homes were damaged during a brush fire on Foley Hill north of Clinton on Thursday, March 17, 2016. Above, resident Albert Look, who lives on Jarnigan Chapel Road, fights the fire with a garden hose until the Medford Fire Department arrives. (Photo by Caren Look)

 

CLINTON—No one was injured and no homes were damaged during a brush fire on Foley Hill north of Clinton on Thursday.

The fire was 1.5 acres, and it was started by an “escaped debris fire,” the Tennessee Division of Forestry said. A warning was issued, officials said.

Residents who live off Jarnigan Chapel Road on the top of the hill said it started at the bottom of the hill, and the wind blew it up through the woods.

“It was horrifying,” said J.T. Taylor, who lives near the top of the hill. He said flames about 10 feet high came within 20 feet of his home. [Read more…]

Dryer fire injures none, Briceville fire under investigation

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Sulphur Springs Road Fire

A Sunday morning fire on Sulphur Springs Road in Anderson County injured no one but caused significant damage to the roof and laundry room of a home, according to WYSH Radio in Clinton. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Information from WYSH Radio

ANDERSON COUNTY—A Sunday morning fire on Sulphur Springs Road injured no one but caused significant damage to the roof and laundry room of the home.

The house was fully engulfed in flames when Anderson County Sheriff’s Department deputies arrived on the scene shortly after 10 a.m., and the blaze was extinguished by crews from the Marlow and Medford volunteer fire departments.

Homeowner Buster Phillips told authorities that he had heard a loud pop come from the laundry room. When he went to investigate, Phillips said, he saw a large fire behind the dryer. He and the other occupant of the house made it out safely.

It was apparently the home of Office on Aging Executive Director Cherie Phillips. WYSH reported on Wednesday that Cherie Phillips lost her home to a fire on Sunday morning, and a GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family. [Read more…]