Darryl Kerley
Josh Waldo
The Center for Public Safety Excellence has notified four officers of the Oak Ridge Fire Department that they have received national accreditation, a press release said.
ORFD Fire Chief Darryl Kerley and Assistant Fire Chief Josh Waldo have been notified that they have been approved for the designation of chief fire officer, the release said. Battalion chiefs Marty Griffith and Joseph Durham have been approved for the designation of fire officer. [Read more…]
Police searching a home on Nevada Circle on Wednesday night allegedly found a half-dozen guns, about 32 grams of what appeared to be marijuana, a small amount of purported crack cocaine, and a tablet identified as Roxicodone, authorities said.
The Oak Ridge Police Department was armed with a search warrant that said all controlled substances found in the home were to be seized as evidence, according to arrest warrants filed in Anderson County General Sessions Court. [Read more…]
Laphonso R. Porter
An Oak Ridge man is accused of fleeing from police on Wednesday night, driving toward three officers parked in Scarboro, wrecking a car, and running on foot before being arrested.
Laphonso R. Porter, 23, remained jailed in the Anderson County Detention Facility on Thursday night. He has been charged with three counts of aggravated assault, two counts of evading arrest, driving on a suspended license, and reckless endangerment, according to arrest warrants. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge Junior Police Academy students at the Law Enforcement Innovation Center in 2012. (Submitted photo)
The 2nd Annual Junior Police Academy will take place from Aug. 5-9. This is the last week before Oak Ridge Schools start the new school year.
Cadets will be given presentations by several Oak Ridge Police Department officers on topics that include K9 and SWAT operations, traffic stops and more. Cadets will also visit the prestigious Law Enforcement Innovation Center, Anderson County Detention Facility, and Anderson County Criminal Court, and they will be given a presentation by the Knox County Sheriff’s Office’s Aviation unit, who will fly in on a helicopter.
The academy meets from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. each day. Those who are eligible to attend are students entering high school this year or returning to high school, or those that graduated this May. Private school and home-schooled students are welcome as well. [Read more…]
An Oak Ridge boy was hit by a car while riding a bike from a driveway on West Outer Drive across the road toward Waltham Lane on Thursday afternoon.
A witness said the eight-year-old boy rode in front of the car suddenly, not allowing the driver any time to stop or evade the collision. [Read more…]
The Tennessee Highway Patrol has released information on the Saturday night crashes in Oak Ridge that ended a high-speed chase, caused one vehicle to overturn, and sent two people to a hospital.
The chase started in Kingston late Saturday night after the suspect, Austin Cody Burns, 21, of Tellico Plains, nearly collided head-on with a vehicle driven by a deputy, the Roane County Sheriff’s Office reported. Burns allegedly fled from Roane County and Kingston Police Department officers at speeds that exceeded 90 mph. [Read more…]
James T. Akagi
The Secret City Festival will have tighter security at the Friday and Saturday night concerts this year, and visitors could experience a few delays as organizers try to make the shows safer, a press release said.
No backpacks or coolers will be allowed into the concert site, and all bags will be subject to search, the release said.
“In light of recent events, we’re being extra vigilant in our protection of our attendees, staff, and the community during the festival concerts,” Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi said. [Read more…]
Information from WYSH Radio
Oak Ridge Police are investigating the thefts of four air conditioning units from a church in two separate incidents.
Three Sundays ago, members of the West Village Christian Church discovered that the lines to a pair of AC units on one side of their building had been cut when they went to see why the air wasn’t working. The next day, those two units were stolen. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge firefighters investigate a report of smoke at Oak Ridge Utility District on Thursday morning. They found a hot ceiling tile and determined a light ballast had apparently failed, causing a fixture to overheat and igniting insulation paper. (Submitted photos)
The Oak Ridge Fire Department called it a “near miss.”
Firefighters responded at about 6:40 a.m. Thursday to a report of smoke at the Oak Ridge Utility District office building on South Jefferson Circle. The source of the smoke was initially believed to be a motor on a heat and air unit that had failed, but fire crews using a thermal imaging camera located a hot ceiling tile in an office, an ORFD press release said.
“It appears that a light ballast had failed, causing the fixture to overheat, which ignited the paper backing on the insulation lying directly on top of the recessed light,” the release said. “The paper burned along the insulation for approximately five feet until the insulation came into contact with a sprinkler pipe, where it self-extinguished. There was no damage, smoke or water, to the building, and the burned insulation was removed by the firefighters.” [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Fire Department responds to a trash fire apparently started by charcoal ashes on Golfcrest Lane on Wednesday. Pictured above are Oak Ridge Fire Department Capt. Kerry Osborne on top of ladder, and firefighters Joe Brackins, left, and Seth Burnett.
(Photo by Tom Scott)
Charcoal ashes discarded in a trash bag on a deck apparently started a Wednesday afternoon fire on Golfcrest Lane, the Oak Ridge Fire Department said Thursday.
Firefighters responded to a report of smoke at 119 Golfcrest Lane at 12:49 p.m. Wednesday. A neighbor threw water on the flames before the Fire Department arrived and the small fire was out, an ORFD press release said.
The only damage to the home was a small hole in two boards in the deck. [Read more…]
A tree fell on a vacant Delaware Avenue home during a severe Monday night storm. (Photo by Brad Jones)
A strong storm that blew through Oak Ridge on Monday knocked two trees down onto homes. One fell onto a firefighter’s house and caused several thousand dollars worth of damage, Oak Ridge Fire Department Chief Darryl Kerley said.
Firefighters also responded to a call from a woman who called 911 and said she thought she had been struck by lightning during the 7 p.m. storm.
“Upon arrival, the fire department found her in the living room of her home complaining of chest pain,” Kerley said. “She stated she was standing looking out the window when lighting hit in front of her, and she began experiencing chest pain. She was transported to Methodist Medical Center for evaluation.” [Read more…]
During a severe thunderstorm on Monday evening, the Oak Ridge Fire Department responded to a call of a woman who had possibly been struck by lightning.
The woman reported she was standing by a window at a Vanderbilt Drive home at about 7:19 p.m. Monday when she saw a bright flash of light and then had a funny feeling in her chest, ORFD Chief Darryl Kerley said Tuesday. [Read more…]
