Information from WYSH Radio
An Anderson County woman died in a single-vehicle crash on Lake City Highway Tuesday morning, authorities said.
According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, 71-year-old Marianna Pearson of Clinton had been headed south in a Mazda 626 at around 9 a.m. Tuesday when she lost control of the car while negotiating a right-hand curve near Pumphouse Lane. The car went off the left side of the road and struck an embankment.
The cause of the crash is under investigation.
Paul White
Note: This story was updated at 11:45 a.m.
Twenty-five people were indicted on drug-related charges by an Anderson County Grand Jury in November after investigations by the Sheriff’s Special Operations Unit, authorities said Wednesday.
Deputies have been out making arrests on these indictments while also continuing investigations on related drug activity, Anderson County Sheriff Paul White said in a Wednesday morning press release.
The drug investigations were conducted during the last few months. White said the indictments were for the manufacture, sales, delivery, or possession of illegal drugs, and those indicted either sold to undercover agents or possessed drugs for resale.
“These indictments primarily include charges resulting from sale or possession for resale of prescription or legend drugs, as well as marijuana and methamphetamine-related offenses,” White said. [Read more…]
Field work to prepare the Y-12 National Security Complex for building the Uranium Processing Facility is on schedule and under budget, federal officials said. (Photo courtesy NNSA)
Field work to prepare the Y-12 National Security Complex for building the Uranium Processing Facility, or UPF, is on schedule and under budget and has surpassed 500 days without a recordable accident or injury, a press release said.
Site Readiness, the first construction subproject for UPF, began in late spring 2013 and is expected to be completed in winter 2015.
“The Site Readiness subproject is setting the standard for quality UPF construction on budget,” said Don Peters, federal construction manager for the National Nuclear Security Administration’s UPF Project Office. “We’ve accomplished a lot of work in an area that stretches across an approximate five-mile linear footprint.”
The press release said that work either completed or under way includes relocation of Bear Creek Road, including a new bridge; relocation of several potable water lines; rerouting of overhead electrical lines; construction of a haul road; mitigation for wetlands impacted during road construction; development of the west borrow and wet spoils areas to receive soils for later project phases; demolition of a parking lot, a decommissioned guard tower, and other structures; and construction of sediment basins to protect Y-12 natural resources from erosion and sedimentation. [Read more…]
Teresa M. Robbins
Teresa M. Robbins has been named deputy manager for the National Nuclear Security Administration Production Office, or NPO.
In her new role, Robbins is responsible for day-to-day management and tactical execution of NPO activities. NPO is responsible for contract management and technical oversight of the consolidated contract at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge and Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Texas.
“Ms. Robbins has a wealth of technical and project management experience and excellent personnel management skills,” said Steve Erhart, NPO manager. “She is a great addition to the senior executive team in NNSA.”
Robbins has more than 20 years of experience in nuclear facility operations, engineering, safety analysis, maintenance, and risk analysis within the U.S. Department of Energy complex, a press release said. She previously held several leadership positions at NNSA, where she served as the deputy federal project director for the Uranium Processing Facility project, and more recently as acting senior scientific and technical adviser and then as the acting assistant manager for environment, safety, health, and quality for NPO. [Read more…]
A float by Second Baptist Church featuring a large sleigh and reindeer won first place in the Dec. 1, 2012, Christmas parade in Clinton. (File photo courtesy of Janet Hawkins)
Clinton’s traditional Christmas Parade of bands, floats, and many other processional entries will begin at 6 p.m. on Saturday, December 13. This year’s theme is “The Gifts of Christmas!”
Businesses, churches, schools, and other marching groups are encouraged to register and participate in the parade. The parade entry fee of $10 is payable to the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce, and the deadline to register is 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, December 10. There will be no late entries, a press release said.
Entry forms can either be picked up at the Chamber of Commerce office located at 245 North Main Street, Suite 200, Clinton, or to receive a form by mail, fax, or email, call the Chamber at (865) 457-2559. You may also obtain a registration form, map, and instructions at www.andersoncountychamber.org. [Read more…]
Paul White
The Knox County Sheriff’s Office is putting out a warning about a telephone scam that is again circulating in Knox County. The caller pretends to be a sheriff’s deputy or court official and says that the person has an outstanding warrant, didn’t report for jury duty, or has a failure to appear, and that it can be taken care of with a certain amount of money. He then says the money can be transferred to the caller with a Greet Dot card, prepaid credit card, or to meet and bring the “cash bond.”
This same scam occurred earlier in the year in our area, including Anderson County, Anderson County Sheriff Paul White said. So far, no new cases have been reported in Anderson County, but the scam appears to target residents in all of our area counties. [Read more…]
Pictured above are U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann, left, a Republican who represents Tennessee’s Third District, and Mark Whitney, acting assistant secretary for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management. (Submitted photo)
WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann will lead the Nuclear Cleanup Caucus, a group of lawmakers who have U.S. Department of Energy cleanup sites in their districts. Fleischmann’s district includes Oak Ridge.
The congressman made the announcement at a Tuesday morning press conference in Washington, D.C.
Fleischmann is a Tennessee Republican who is taking over caucus leadership from Representative Doc Hastings, a Washington Republican who is retiring at the end of this term.
“It is a great honor to serve as Chairman of this important caucus,” Fleischmann said after the press conference. “It is an absolute necessity that we ensure the success of our nuclear cleanup missions, not only in East Tennessee, but at all cleanup sites throughout our nation. I am excited to lead this bipartisan group of legislators from across the country and look forward to the work ahead.”
“From my time at Oak Ridge, I know firsthand how passionate and knowledgeable Congressman Fleischmann is about the nuclear cleanup mission,” said Mark Whitney, the acting assistant secretary for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management. “His deep understanding of the Office of Environmental Management’s mission and challenges make him an effective advocate as he leads the Cleanup Caucus into the future.”
The male driver of this Ford Taurus was stable with minor injuries after going off Oliver Springs Highway, rolling down a drop-off, and hitting a large tree, authorities said. The driver had to be extricated and was taken by ambulance to Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge. (Photos by Tom Scott)
Rescuers had to extricate the male driver of a car that rolled down a drop-off alongside Oliver Springs Highway and hit a large tree Tuesday morning, and the man was in stable condition with minor injuries, authorities said.
The single-vehicle crash was reported at about 6:50 a.m. Tuesday on Oliver Springs Highway near Bill Key Lane.
The Ford Taurus was headed toward Oliver Springs when it rolled a few times down a 10- to 15-foot drop-off alongside the highway, said Stephanie Fox, assistant chief of the Marlow Volunteer Fire Department. The car stopped when it hit a large tree, she said. [Read more…]
More than $4,000 worth of tobacco was stolen from this Marathon gas station on Edgemoor Road in a Tuesday morning burglary, authorities said.
Video footage from the store’s security system showed an unidentified man using what appeared to be a crowbar to break this glass door before entering the store and putting cigarettes and smokeless tobacco into a bag, authorities said.
More than $4,000 worth of tobacco was stolen from a gas station in a burglary on Edgemoor Road early Tuesday morning, authorities said.
The burglary at the Marathon gas station and store at 1060 Edgemoor Road occurred just before 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, according to store owner Sunil Patel of Oak Ridge.
Video footage from the store’s security system shows a white man of medium build using what appears to be a crowbar to break the glass on a front door before entering the store, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Michael A. Poole said in an incident report. The unidentified man then went behind the counter and placed cigarettes and cans of smokeless tobacco into a bag, Poole said. [Read more…]
Y-12 Development’s Roland Seals explains Y‑12’s infrared heating capabilities to NASA and DOE Office of Nuclear Energy officials. (Photo by Brett Pate)
The Y-12 National Security Complex is taking their uranium expertise to the next level—outer space.
The NNSA Production Office (NPO) at Y-12 struck an agreement earlier this year with NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, to support the design of a small nuclear-powered reactor with the potential to lead to small fission power reactors for future space exploration missions.
For the first phase of the project, Y-12 will research materials and manufacturing processes for a physics demonstration of a kilowatt-range nuclear reactor, known as project Kilopower, using an enriched uranium-molybdenum metallic fuel core and a lithium-hydride shield. The Kilopower concept was a 2013 R&D 100 Award winner for proof-of-principle experiments performed at the National Criticality Experiments Research Center in Nevada led by Los Alamos National Laboratory in collaboration with NASA Glenn and National Security Technologies.
“Science missions are seeking greater power and functionality,” explained Lee Mason, chief of the Thermal Energy Conversion Branch at Glenn. “We’re planning to demonstrate the technology in a ground test using a prototype U-235 reactor core.” [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Police Department is investigating a suspicious death on Monday morning, authorities said.
Police officers responded to a report of a possible intruder at 615 West Vanderbilt Drive at 4:40 a.m. Monday, a city press release said.
When officers arrived, they found a dead man in the apartment, the release said. The name of the victim is being withheld until family members have been notified.
“The investigation remains ongoing, and additional information will be released as it becomes available,” the release said.
Freshman post Mykia Dowdell (34) had 27 points for the Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats in a 82-41 win over the Halls Red Devils on Friday night. (Photos by Luther Simmons)
Freshman post Mykia Dowdell scored 27 points for Oak Ridge as the Lady Wildcats opened up a large lead in the second half of a 82-41 win over the Halls Lady Red Devils on Friday night.
The game was closer at halftime, when the Lady Wildcats were up 30-24. Dowdell led all scorers then with 11 points.
But Oak Ridge’s rebounding and defense improved in the second half, and the teamwork was better, Oak Ridge coach David Scott said. The Lady Wildcats scored 52 points in the second half alone.
Other leading scorers on Friday were Caelyn Thompson with 14 points, Princess Bates with 12, Courtney Ellison with 10, Jas Hembry with nine, and Destiny Kassner with seven. [Read more…]
