Oliver Springs Archives - Oak Ridge Today

Jail death probed by TBI

Posted at 12:40 pm April 10, 2018
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Information from WYSH Radio

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is investigating the death of an inmate at the Anderson County Detention Facility that occurred in March.

Preliminary investigations have not turned up anything suspicious, according to the TBI, but their investigation is ongoing.

Patricia Jones, 53, of Oliver Springs was booked into the jail on March 17 on charges of forgery and theft filed by the Oliver Springs Police Department. Jones was found dead inside her cell the following day, March 18, by a jailer who checked on her after noticing that she had stopped snoring, and found her unresponsive. [Read more…]

Man dies, teen injured in Oliver Springs crash

Posted at 12:49 pm March 28, 2018
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A 44-year-old man died and a teenager was injured in a two-vehicle crash in Oliver Springs on Sunday evening, authorities said.

Anthony M. Maston, who has an address listed in Oliver Springs, was driving north in a 2016 Kia sport utility vehicle on State Route 62 when he crossed the center line into the southbound lane and hit a southbound 2010 Nissan Altima car driven by a 17-year-old Oliver Springs girl, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said in a report.

Maston died due to the crash, which was reported at about 8:17 p.m. Sunday near the intersection with State Route 61, the THP said. He was not wearing a seat belt, the report said.

The 17-year-old driver of the second vehicle, the Nissan Altima car, was injured. She wasn’t wearing a seat belt either and neither was her 16-year-old passenger, the THP said. [Read more…]

Anderson County residents among 44 indicted in meth distribution conspiracy

Posted at 8:28 pm March 26, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A group of Anderson County residents was part of an alleged methamphetamine distribution ring that involved 44 people and a conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine in East Tennessee and elsewhere, federal officials said Monday.

A 30-count indictment was returned against the 44 people by a federal grand jury in Greeneville in East Tennessee on January 9. Among those indicted were nine residents of Clinton, Oliver Springs, Powell, and Rocky Top, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Eastern District of Tennessee on Monday. There were also four Knoxville residents indicted and a dozen in Bristol and Kingsport in upper East Tennessee, among other defendants in Tennessee, Georgia, and Virginia.

Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, Clinton Police Department, Oak Ridge Police Department, Oliver Springs Police Department, and Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force in Anderson County were among the agencies that helped with the investigation, the press release said.

Here are the people that were indicted in the alleged methamphetamine distribution conspiracy: [Read more…]

Man charged with attempted murder in alleged baseball bat attack

Posted at 11:05 am March 19, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Clayton Perry Jones

Note: This story was last updated at 3:45 p.m. March 22.

An Anderson County man has been charged with attempted murder after allegedly beating another man in the head, arms, and back with a baseball bat at a car wash in Oliver Springs in the summer of 2016, according to court records.

Clayton Perry Jones, 53, of Dutch Valley Road, was indicted by the Anderson County Grand Jury on Tuesday, March 13, on charges of attempted first-degree murder and aggravated assault with a weapon, according to court records. He has an arraignment scheduled for March 26 in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton.

Jones is accused of beating Brett Blank in the head, back, and arms with a baseball bat as Blank was cleaning his vehicle at the Sportsman Car Wash on East Tri County Boulevard in Oliver Springs on Thursday, July 14, 2016, according to an affidavit filed in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge on July 13, 2017.

The alleged beating was stopped by a witness with a handgun who was also at the car wash cleaning his vehicle, which was parked in front of Blank’s vehicle, according to the affidavit. The armed witness, Hank Mullins, saw Jones hitting Blank with the baseball bat, and Mullins revealed his concealed-carry handgun to deter the fight and told them to “Stop! Stop! Stop!” according to the affidavit. Both Blank and Jones then ran in opposite directions, said the affidavit, which was filed by Oliver Springs Police Department Patrolman Samuel Seiber. [Read more…]

Man escapes from vehicle in flood water on Airport Road

Posted at 5:05 pm February 11, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A man escaped from a vehicle in flood water on Airport Road on the east side of Oliver Springs on Saturday night, Feb. 10, 2018, authorities said. The vehicle, reported to be a Jeep, was submerged under flood water at one time, but its top was visible early Sunday afternoon. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

OLIVER SPRINGS—A man escaped from a vehicle in flood water on Airport Road on the east side of Oliver Springs on Saturday night, authorities said.

The vehicle, reported to be a Jeep, was submerged under flood water at one time, but its top was visible early Sunday afternoon.

The man called 911 at the Oliver Springs Police Department at about 9 p.m. Saturday, and the Oliver Springs Police Department responded. Members of the Oliver Springs Fire Department also responded.

But the man was able to escape on his own through flood water reported to be chest-deep, authorities said. [Read more…]

Flooding closes several roads, Arrowhead Park in Oliver Springs

Posted at 9:41 am February 11, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Flooding has closed several roads in Oliver Springs and Arrowhead Park. The closures were announced Sunday morning, Feb. 11, 2018, by the Oliver Springs Police Department. (Photo courtesy Oliver Springs Police Department)

Flooding has closed several roads in Oliver Springs and Arrowhead Park. The closures were announced Sunday morning by the Oliver Springs Police Department.

“Please use caution while driving in Oliver Springs,” the Oliver Springs Police Department said. “Several secondary roads are closed such as Airport Road, Midway Drive, Strutt Street, and Bennett Road. Other roads have debris and standing water, so please be careful.”

There was heavy rain on Saturday, and more than two inches of rain were expected in the area between Saturday afternoon and Sunday night, with more rain possible this week, according to the National Weather Service in Morristown.

In Oak Ridge, the intersection of Jefferson Avenue and Jefferson Circle is closed due to flooding. [Read more…]

Oliver Springs fire chief provides more information on Sunday explosion

Posted at 3:37 pm September 22, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Justin Bailey (File photo courtesy Oliver Springs Fire Department)

The explosion in Oliver Springs on Sunday that rattled windows and shook homes as far away as Oak Ridge was caused by gasoline poured on what was left of a barn that had been leveled and then ignited, the fire chief said Friday.

Oliver Springs Fire Chief Justin Bailey said firefighters don’t know for sure how much gasoline was used, but the property owner had at least a five-gallon gas can.

There was still a strong odor of gasoline when emergency responders arrived, Bailey said.

The explosion was reported on Tri County Boulevard at Mahoney Road on Sunday evening, just before it got dark, in a field across from Lee’s Market in south Oliver Springs, just down the hill from Oak Ridge.

The property owner had leveled the barn, and only natural wood remained, Bailey said. The property owner was allowed to burn the untreated wood with a permit, and he had received a burn permit from City Hall over the phone. [Read more…]

Oliver Springs: No injuries when gas causes explosion

Posted at 11:22 pm September 17, 2017
By Oak Ridge Today Staff 7 Comments

Oliver Springs Fire Department

The Oliver Springs Fire Department said it responded to a report of an explosion on Tri County Boulevard at Mahoney Road on Sunday evening.

“On arrival, members found a large brush pile that was on fire,” the Fire Department said in a post online. “The cause of the explosion was due to the use of gasoline as a source for ignition.”

There were no injuries or property damage. The fire was extinguished by Oliver Springs Fire Department personnel.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

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Oliver Springs officer escapes serious injury when patrol car struck

Posted at 11:35 am August 4, 2017
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Information from WYSH Radio

An Oliver Springs police officer escaped serious injury Thursday night when his parked patrol car was struck while he responded to a traffic crash.

The incident occurred at the Highway 61/62 interchange Thursday evening as Oliver Springs Police Department Sergeant Charles Graham responded to a minor crash. Preliminary indications are that a second driver struck the back of the officer’s patrol car, which in turn caused the cruiser to strike him. [Read more…]

Trees fall, roads flood, driver escapes floodwaters as rains continue

Posted at 7:16 pm April 23, 2017
By John Huotari 2 Comments

Airport-Road-Flooding-Oliver-Springs-Storms-April-22-2017

The driver was reported to have made it out of floodwaters before emergency responders arrived on Saturday afternoon, April 22, 2017, but her black Nissan Altima remained partially submerged on Airport Road near Oliver Springs on Sunday. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was last updated at 8 p.m.

Roads flooded and trees fell—sometimes on homes, power lines, and roads—as rain continued to fall in East Tennessee on Sunday. One driver was reported to have escaped from her car in floodwaters on Airport Road near Oliver Springs on Saturday afternoon, but the black Nissan Altima remained partially submerged in the water on Sunday.

There appeared to have been at least 10 reports of fallen trees in Oak Ridge during the severe thunderstorms that started Saturday afternoon and continued with rain showers on Sunday. Most of those trees were reported to have fallen on homes, power lines, across roadways, or on personal property such as an automobile. There were five reports of fallen trees between about 3 and 4:30 p.m. Sunday, including a tree that fell across both lanes of Melton Lake Drive near Calhoun’s restaurant, causing a temporary closure of that two-lane road.

There were more reports of trees that had fallen but not damaged anything.

Large trees are falling due to excess rain, the City of Oak Ridge said Sunday. Electric crews have been out all night, and backup is on the way, the city said, but it may be tomorrow (Monday, April 24) before all power is back.

At various times on Sunday, there were reports of flooding or flood watches across Oak Ridge, including on Vermont Avenue, near Heritage Center (the former K-25 site), on California Avenue, and at Jefferson Avenue and North Jefferson Circle.

There were also reports of trees down and road closures in Clinton. Briceville Highway was reported to be closed in Briceveille due to sinking pavement on Sunday afternoon. Earlier Sunday, State Route 71 in Anderson County was closed for several hours at Norris Dam State Park because trees were blocking the road, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation.

Some school districts have announced they will be closed Monday. Roane County Schools said it will be closed due to “concerning road conditions throughout the county.” Anderson County Schools said it will be closed because of dangerous conditions with flooded roads and trees being down.

The National Weather Service in Morristown said a record for daily rainfall was set at Knoxville Mcghee Tyson Airport on Sunday. The NWS said 1.89 inches had fallen as of 5 p.m. Sunday, breaking the old record of 1.63 inches in 1977.

[Read more…]

Gust of wind blew airplane into trees, and he crashed, pilot says

Posted at 12:22 pm April 17, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oliver Springs Plane Crash April 15 2017

The pilot of a small experimental or ultralight aircraft was reported to be okay after a crash in a field in Anderson County near Valley Drive in Oliver Springs on Saturday afternoon, April 15, 2017, authorities said. (Photo by Oliver Springs Fire Department)

OLIVER SPRINGS—The pilot of a small airplane that crashed near Oliver Springs on Saturday told authorities that a gust of wind blew the plane into trees while he was approaching his grass landing strip, and he crashed.

The crash of the ultralight aircraft was reported at about 3:30 p.m. Saturday in a field off Valley Drive in Oliver Springs, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said.

The pilot, Timothy Stringer, 40, had attempted to land at his private grass landing strip at his home on Ray Lane. The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department located him at his home. He had some visible lacerations but refused any medical treatment, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Adam Warren said in an incident report. [Read more…]

Pilot reported to be okay when small aircraft crashes near Oliver Springs

Posted at 7:56 pm April 15, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The pilot of a small experimental or ultralight aircraft was reported to be okay after a crash in Anderson County near Oliver Springs on Saturday afternoon, April 15, 2017, authorities said. (Photo by Oliver Springs Fire Department)

Note: This story was last updated at 12:15 p.m. April 16.

MARLOW—The pilot of a small experimental or ultralight aircraft was reported to be okay after a crash in Anderson County near Oliver Springs on Saturday afternoon, authorities said.

The pilot was reported to have walked away from the crash and declined medical treatment.

Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said federal officials have been notified of the crash of the registered aircraft. The cause of the crash isn’t clear. [Read more…]