David Lee Francis
Melissa Darnell Shillings
An Oak Ridge couple accused of being involved in a domestic dispute on Saturday that resulted in a seven-month-old child being kicked in the head with a boot remained jailed Wednesday evening.
David Lee Francis, 38, and Melissa Darnell Shillings, 35, of Wainwright Road, are both charged with aggravated child abuse and domestic assault. [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Beer Permit Board approved a suspension of up to two weeks for a Grove Center bar that was the scene of an April 14 fight involving two men, including one who police said was very intoxicated.
But the beer permit suspension, scheduled to start Sept. 1, could be shortened to one week if Back 2 Brewski’s meets a few requirements, including proving that employees who need training on responsibly serving alcohol complete a course by Aug. 30. [Read more…]
Three people were taken to the hospital after a two-car collision on Friday morning in east Oak Ridge.
An Oak Ridge Police Department crash report said Edgar L. Cagley, 77, of Kingston tried to turn left from Elza Drive onto Oak Ridge Turnpike in a Hyundai sedan at about 11:09 a.m. Friday, but he did not yield to an eastbound Cadillac sedan driven by Margaret Burnett Martin, 84, of Oak Ridge. Cagley drove into Martin’s path, causing the collision, the report said. [Read more…]
Three residents escaped but two cats died in a Monday morning fire in a den and kitchen at a home on Geneva Lane. (Photos by Tom Scott)
Three residents escaped but two cats died in a Monday morning fire in a den and kitchen at a home on West Geneva Lane.
The fire was reported at about 6:36 a.m. at 110 W. Geneva Lane.
The homeowner, Debora Boody, said her mother smelled smoke when she got up to shower in the morning. After she was awakened, Debora Boody went to the den and said it looked black inside, so she opened the den doors and smoke immediately filled the kitchen, an Oak Ridge Fire Department report said. [Read more…]
A small fire around an electrical outlet in a bedroom on a multifamily home on Hamilton Circle was extinguished before firefighters arrived Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.
Firefighters found light smoke and evidence of burning when they arrived at 102 Hamilton Circle at about 3 p.m. Tuesday, but they said the fire had not spread. [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Fire Department responds to a possible hazardous materials spill on Thursday evening at a creek that flows through the Oak Ridge Civic Center. (Photo courtesy ORFD)
The water was milky white and there were a half-dozen dead minnows on Thursday evening, but the Oak Ridge Fire Department was unable to find any hazardous materials in a small creek that flows through Alvin K. Bissell Park in the center of the city.
“We couldn’t detect what it actually was, and we couldn’t find any place that it was introduced into the stream,” ORFD Chief Darryl Kerley said Friday.
Kerley said medium and larger fish in the area were okay and so was a snapping turtle. [Read more…]
An Oak Ridge woman was hit by a vehicle driven by an Oak Ridge man on South Illinois Avenue on Monday, authorities said.
Elaine Emerson, 41, was struck near Badger Avenue at 6:12 p.m. Monday by a vehicle driven south by Brandon Luke, 42, the Oak Ridge Police Department said.
Emerson was transported by ambulance to the University of Tennessee Medical Center, where she was listed as being in critical but stable condition, ORPD Lt. Robin Smith said. No charges are expected to be filed against the driver of the vehicle.
James T. Akagi
A memo he wrote in May was used by an Oak Ridge City Council member who wrote a controversial letter that has sparked a heated, week-long debate about drugs and violence in the city’s schools.
But Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi declined to elaborate on the memo on Monday—or discuss how it was used in the letter published last week by Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn. Her letter, which also relied on conversations with current and former school staff members and parents of students, alleged drugs are rampant in many schools, children are at risk of being assaulted, and a “culture of terror” has saturated the system.
Asked for his views on the letter, which was sent to new superintendent Bruce Borchers, Akagi said he couldn’t comment. [Read more…]
Workers set up fireworks at A.K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge for a Sunday evening (July 7) show. (Photo by Darryl Kerley)
The Oak Ridge fireworks show is still scheduled for this evening, and crews were loading the fireworks Sunday morning, Oak Ridge Fire Department Chief Darryl Kerley said.
The July 4 fireworks were rescheduled for 10 p.m. today (Sunday, July 7) because of forecasts calling for heavy rain before and on Independence Day.
The event itself starts at 7 p.m. today at A.K. Bissell Park. Radio host Jack Ryan will be transmitting live from the park beginning at 6 p.m. and will conclude the live broadcast on Merle 96.7 FM with a patriotic medley as the fireworks are shot, according to a city press release last week. [Read more…]
Josh Waldo
The Center for Public Safety Excellence has notified Assistant Fire Chief Josh Waldo of the Oak Ridge Fire Department that he has been approved for two national accreditations, a press release said.
It said Waldo has been approved for the designations of chief training officer and fire marshal. In March, Waldo was accredited by the CPSE as chief fire officer. The two additional accreditations were approved this week.
The release said Waldo has completed his master’s degree from Eastern Kentucky University and is currently enrolled in the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program. [Read more…]
This year’s Secret City Festival included expanded areas for children and the Oak Ridge Fire Department, among other changes.
You can now revisit all the fun and excitement of the 2013 Secret City Festival by visiting the Oak Ridge Fire Department’s You Tube page, a press release said.
During the recent festival in June, several hours of footage were collected of the Fire Department zip line and water play areas, and they have now been formatted into short video clips. You can view these clips at www.youtube.com/oakridgefd.
The videos were shot and produced by ORFD Capt. Jason Benjamin, who is also an accomplished actor, producer, and award-winning screen writer, the press release said. [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Fire Department held a ceremony on June 11 to welcome two new members.
The event was held at Fire Station No. 3, and firefighter trainees Courtney McCarter and Joe Brackins were sworn in as the two newest members of the fire department. Both firefighters began their service for the department on April 22 and have already completed multiple training sessions, a press release said. [Read more…]
