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Burn ban in effect in Oak Ridge, restrictions in OS

Posted at 8:49 pm November 10, 2023
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

The City of Oak Ridge remains under a burn ban, and there are fire restrictions in Oliver Springs.

Oak Ridge Fire Chief Travis Solomon issued a burn ban on November 5.

“Due to the dry conditions in our region, no burn permits will be issued until further notice,” the City of Oak Ridge said. “Outdoor burning without a permit is banned by city ordinance.”

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Oak Ridge, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire, Top Stories Tagged With: burn ban, burn permits, fire restrictions, Oak Ridge, Oliver Springs, Oliver Springs Fire Department, Travis Solomon

Bond in murder case set at $1 million

Posted at 12:28 pm December 13, 2022
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Nathan Newport

Bond for an Oliver Springs man accused of murdering his wife Monday morning was set at $1 million.

The bond order for Nathan Lee Newport, 60, was signed by new Anderson County General Sessions Court Judge Matthew Tuck on Tuesday.

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Filed Under: Anderson County, Courts, Front Page News, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire, Premium Content, Tennessee, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County General Sessions Court, first-degree murder, Janice Newport, Matthew Tuck, Nathan Lee Newport, Oliver Springs, shooting, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation

TBI: Man fatally shoots woman, denies aid

Posted at 11:32 pm December 12, 2022
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Nathan Newport

A 60-year-old Oliver Springs man allegedly killed a 52-year-old woman with a shotgun Monday morning and, during a police standoff, refused to let officers give her medical aid, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

The man, Nathan Newport, 60, has been charged with criminal homicide—first-degree murder. He is alleged to have killed Janice Newport, 52, in a home in Oliver Springs at about 6:30 a.m. Monday.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

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Filed Under: Anderson County, Courts, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire, Premium Content, Tennessee, Top Stories Tagged With: Dave Clark, David Laxton, first-degree murder, Janice Newport, Nathan Newport, Oak Ridge Police Department, Oliver Springs Police Department, shooting, TBI, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation

Marshals catch fugitive after pursuit, injury to deputy

Posted at 2:12 pm May 5, 2021
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Jesse Duncan

The U.S. Marshals Service has caught a fugitive who was being pursued when an Anderson County Sheriff’s Office deputy was hit by a vehicle on Saturday night, sending the deputy to the hospital, the ACSO said.

The fugitive, Jesse Duncan, 38, was captured Tuesday night near Harriman Highway by the U.S. Marshals Service, the ACSO said.

The deputy, Stephen Carroll, has been released from the hospital, and he is “recovering nicely,” the ACSO said.

“He is grateful for all of the thoughts and prayers from everyone,” the Sheriff’s Office said.

Duncan had been pursued this weekend by Carroll and others on Tri County Boulevard in Oliver Springs when Carroll was hit by a vehicle, the ACSO said. His leg was broken, and it was repaired during surgery this week.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire, Top Stories, U.S. Tagged With: ACSO, Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, crash, Jesse Duncan, Stephen Carroll, U.S. Marshals Service

ORFD photographer dies at 88

Posted at 6:38 pm January 29, 2021
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Tom Scott (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

Tom Scott—photographer for the Oak Ridge Fire Department who kept historic fire trucks, equipment, and literature at his home—died Saturday. He was 88.

Scott was born in Tuscumbia, Alabama, but he spent the last three decades in Oak Ridge serving as the fire department’s official photographer, the City of Oak Ridge said Thursday. Scott also took photos at other fires and crashes in the area, including in Blair, Marlow, and Oliver Springs.

Scott had moved to Oak Ridge in the 1970s to work on the development of the gas centrifuge process for enriching uranium.

In 1974, he joined the Oliver Springs Volunteer Fire Department, and in 1990, he joined the Oak Ridge Fire Department as their official photographer, the city said. That happened after ORFD responded to a large structure fire where Scott was taking pictures. When the fire chief at the time, William “Bo” Harris, saw the pictures, he decided the ORFD needed to have an on-site photographer at all incidents to document the fires for training, media, and historical preservation, the city said. Harris asked Scott to lead the effort.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Blair, Front Page News, Marlow, Oak Ridge, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire, Top Stories Tagged With: Oak Ridge Fire Department, Oliver Springs Fire Department, photographer, Tom Scott

Smoke lingers over west Oak Ridge due to barn fire

Posted at 3:51 pm October 21, 2020
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Smoke was lingering over west Oak Ridge today (Wednesday, October 21) due to a barn fire off Johnson Road in Oliver Springs yesterday.

The smoke was lingering over west Oak Ridge because of heavy fog Wednesday morning, the Oak Ridge Fire Department said.

Filed Under: Oak Ridge, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire Tagged With: barn fire, fire, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Fire Department, Oliver Springs

New federal designation means more law enforcement funding, full-time ATF agent

Posted at 10:24 am December 29, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Anderson-County-High-Intensity-Drug-Trafficking-Area-Press-Conference-Dec-17-2019
A new federal designation for Anderson County will mean more federal funding for the county’s drug and violent crime task force and a full-time agent from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark said Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A new federal designation for Anderson County will mean more federal funding for the county’s drug and violent crime task force and a full-time agent from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

Anderson County is now a high-intensity drug trafficking area, or HIDTA. That designation came from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. It occurred in September and will go into effect January 1.

As part of a two-part announcement this month, law enforcement officials said the White House also selected the county’s task force, the Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, as an Appalachia HIDTA, or AHIDTA. It’s the only locally led drug task force in Tennessee, according to Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark. The county’s Crime Task Force, or CTF, is led by Director Simon Byrne.

“No other drug task force in Tennessee has been awarded an AHIDTA grant,” Clark said. “I am very proud of our leadership team for thinking outside of the box and in looking for smart ways to make our communities safer as well as be good stewards of taxpayer dollars. We are more excited than we can convey, but in short believe that this development has the potential to be transformative as to what we are able to do in Anderson County to protect and serve our communities.”

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Clinton, Federal, Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge, Oliver Springs, Police, Police and Fire, Slider, Tennessee, U.S. Tagged With: AHIDTA, Anderson County, Appalachia HIDTA, ATF, Clinton Police Department, CTF, Dave Clark, Frank A. Haera, HIDTA, high-intensity drug trafficking area, J. Douglas Overbey, Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, Simon Byrne, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, White House, White House Office of National Drug Control Policy

Drug Take Back Day is Saturday in Oak Ridge, Clinton, Norris, Rocky Top

Posted at 1:26 pm October 25, 2019
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Anderson County is participating in the 16th Annual DEA Rx Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, October 26. Community members can bring their expired or unused medicines to one of the Anderson County Take Back locations anytime between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday.

Collection sites will be located at the police departments listed below. Each department will be set up outside in their respective parking lots to receive the expired or unused medicines.

  • Clinton Police Department, 125 West Broad Street, Clinton
  • Norris Police Department, 9 West Circle Road, Norris (will begin at 8 a.m.)
  • Oak Ridge Police Department, 200 South Tulane Avenue, Oak Ridge
  • Rocky Top Police Department, 104 Lawson Street, Rocky Top

The National Rx Drug Take Back Day addresses a crucial public safety and public health issue, a press release said. According to the 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 6.4 million Americans misused controlled prescription drugs, and that number has continued to climb in recent years. Studies show many of the misused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, often from the home medicine cabinet. The Take Back Day provides an opportunity for Americans to prevent drug addiction and overdose deaths in the community and communities across the United States.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Clinton, Community, Health, Norris, Oak Ridge, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire, Rocky Top Tagged With: ASAP of Anderson, DEA Rx Drug Take Back Day, Drug Take Back Day, Rx Drug Take Back Day

NTSB investigating fatal aircraft crash

Posted at 3:10 pm July 16, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the fatal crash of a small aircraft near Oliver Springs Airport on Saturday.

The crash of the experimental light sport aircraft was reported at about 5:18 p.m. Saturday near Smith Road. That’s just east of the airport and on the other side of a tree line, according to an Anderson County Sheriff’s Department report.

The Quicksilver MXII had crashed into a field, and its nose was down into the ground, ACSD Sergeant Kenneth L. Bradley wrote in the report.

The pilot who died has been identified as Patrick Lucas, 45, of Morristown. He appeared to be the only occupant of the aircraft, the report said.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Federal, Front Page News, Government, Marlow, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire, Top Stories, U.S. Tagged With: ACSD, aircraft crash, Anderson County EMS, Anderson County Sheriff's Department, crash, experimental light sport aircraft, fatal aircraft crash, Federal Aviation Administration, Kenneth L. Bradley, Marlow Volunteer Fire Department, National Transportation Safety Board, NTSB, Oliver Springs Airport, Oliver Springs Police Department, Patrick Lucas, Peter Knudson

CTF: Meth, narcotics found during Friday morning searches

Posted at 10:57 am May 31, 2019
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Roughly an ounce of methamphetamine and other narcotics were found during searches on Ridgeview Drive in Oliver Springs on Friday morning, May 31, 2019, law enforcement officers said. (Photo courtesy Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force)

Roughly an ounce of methamphetamine and other narcotics were found during Friday morning searches on Ridgeview Drive in Oliver Springs, law enforcement officers said.

The searches were led by the Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, which had three search warrants. The search operation included the CTF, Oliver Springs Police Department, Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, and Oak Ridge Police Department, a press release said.

ACSO and ORPD SWAT executed two of the three search warrants at the same time, the press release said. The third search warrant was executed shortly after the first two were clear, the release said.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire Tagged With: ACSO, Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, CTF, drug charges, Kenneth Morgan, methamphetamine, narcotics, Oak Ridge Police Department, Oliver Springs, Oliver Springs Police Department, ORPD, OSPD, Ridgeview Drive, search warrants, Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force

OSPD arrests man after burglaries, vehicle theft

Posted at 1:45 pm May 15, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Marcus Lively

The Oliver Springs Police Department arrested a 22-year-old man on Tuesday after investigating store burglaries, a home burglary, and a vehicle theft, police said Wednesday.

The OSPD investigated a report of a vehicle theft at 1410 East Tri County Boulevard on Sunday, May 12, and a burglary at Oscars Market at 1304 East Tri County Boulevard on Tuesday, May 14, the department said in a press release sent by Police Chief Kenneth Morgan.

During the investigation, police officers followed up on information that led to a suspect identified as Marcus Lively, 22, of Oliver Springs, the press release said.

“The investigation suggested that Mr. Lively was responsible for both incidents inside the city as well as a burglary of Gingers Market in the Briceville area of Anderson County,” the press release said.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire, Top Stories Tagged With: burglary, Esau Hamby, Gingers Market, Kenneth Morgan, Marcus Lively, Oliver Springs Police Department, Oscars Market, OSPD, Ryan Williams, store burglaries, vehicle theft

Drug Take Back Day is Saturday

Posted at 10:12 am April 24, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

ASAP of Anderson and police departments in Anderson County have formed a partnership to take back expired or unused medicines on Saturday.

It’s part of the 2019 Drug Enforcement Administration Rx Drug Take Back Day.

“Community members can bring their expired or unused medicines to one of the Anderson County Take Back locations anytime between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. this Saturday,” a press release said.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Clinton, Community, Front Page News, Nonprofits, Norris, Oak Ridge, Oliver Springs, Police and Fire, Rocky Top Tagged With: ASAP of Anderson, Clinton Police Department, Drug Enforcement Administration, Drug Take Back Day, National Rx Drug Take Back Day, Norris Police Department, Oak Ridge Police Department, prescription drugs, prescription medications, Rocky Top Police Department, unused medicine

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