Oak Ridge Today

Oak Ridge Healthy Waters Program hosting Ijams River Rescue

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Stormwater Division and Healthy Waters Program will host a volunteer cleanup on Melton Hill Lake in March. It’s the 33rd Annual Ijams River Rescue, which is a volunteer cleanup event hosted by Ijams Nature Center.

The cleanup is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, March 12.

“Volunteers are encouraged to come out to the Boat Ramp at 173 Edgemoor Road near Haw Ridge Park to keep Melton Hill Lake beautiful,” a press release said.

There is trash in the water and along the banks in the area, which sees high foot traffic and many wildlife sightings as well as litter from vehicles traveling on Edgemoor Road, the press release said.

[Read more…]

Greenway, park closures announced during fall hunts

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has scheduled two scout days and three quota hunts on the Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area this fall.

During the scout and quota hunt days, these greenways and this park will be closed: Gallaher Bend Greenway, North Boundary Greenway, Haw Ridge Park, and the section of Melton Lake Greenway adjacent to Haw Ridge Park.

The hunts, which are open only to those with a valid TWRA quota permit, will take place on the following weekends:

[Read more…]

Driver identified in fatal crash on Edgemoor Road

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The driver killed in the two-vehicle crash on Edgemoor Road on Monday morning has been identified as Michelle Garcia, 61, of Clinton, police said.

The head-on collision, which killed Garcia and injured the other driver, was reported at about 6:30 a.m. Monday near Haw Ridge Park. The name of the other driver hasn’t been released yet.

“The crash remains under investigation,” the Oak Ridge Police Department said Friday. “No other details will be released at this time.”

[Read more…]

UT Arboretum Society has spring wildflower walk on Saturday, April 13

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will have a meet and greet followed by a spring wildflower walk at Haw Ridge Park on Saturday, May 5, 2018. Kris Light, an expert naturalist, educator, and photographer, will lead this fun, educational, and easy walk, a press release said. (Submitted photo)

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will have a meet and greet followed by a spring wildflower walk at Haw Ridge Park on Saturday, April 13, 2019. Kris Light, an expert naturalist, educator, and photographer, will lead this fun, educational, and easy walk, a press release said. (Submitted file photo)

 

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will have a meet-and-greet followed by a spring wildflower walk on Saturday, April 13. The event is scheduled from 2 to 4 p.m. at Haw Ridge Park on Edgemoor Road in Oak Ridge.

Participants are asked to meet at the parking lot, which is at the west end of the park next to the kiosk, near the Soccer Trail, a press release said. The walk is free and open to the public. Kris Light—an expert naturalist, educator, and photographer—will lead this fun, educational, and easy walk, the press release said.

Participants may want to bring a camera to take pictures of the many wildflowers on the grounds. If participants have a wildflower book, Kris suggests bringing that as well, the release said. [Read more…]

UT Arboretum Society has spring wildflower walk on Saturday

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will have a meet and greet followed by a spring wildflower walk at Haw Ridge Park on Saturday, May 5, 2018. Kris Light, an expert naturalist, educator, and photographer, will lead this fun, educational, and easy walk, a press release said. (Submitted photo)

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will have a meet and greet followed by a spring wildflower walk at Haw Ridge Park on Saturday, May 5, 2018. Kris Light, an expert naturalist, educator, and photographer, will lead this fun, educational, and easy walk, a press release said. (Submitted photo)

 

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will have a meet and greet followed by a spring wildflower walk on Saturday, May 5.

It’s scheduled from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday at Haw Ridge Park on Edgemoor Road in Oak Ridge.  The parking lot is at the west end of the park. The walk is free and open to the public. Kris Light, an expert naturalist, educator, and photographer, will lead this fun, educational, and easy walk, a press release said. [Read more…]

UT Arboretum Society has Spring Wildflower Walk on Sunday

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Kris Light (Submitted photo)

Kris Light (Submitted photo)

 

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will have a spring wildflower walk on Sunday, April 9.

The walk is scheduled from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday at Haw Ridge Park on Edgemoor Road in Oak Ridge. The parking lot is at the west end of the park. The walk is free and open to the public. Kris Light, an expert naturalist, educator, and photographer will lead this fun, educational, and easy walk, a press release said.

Participants may want to bring a camera to take pictures of the many wildflowers on the grounds, the press release said. If participants have a wildflower book, Light suggests bringing that as well. [Read more…]

Some periodic park, greenway closures for fall deer hunts

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Haw Ridge Park Parking Lot

Part of the Melton Lake Greenway is pictured above at the Haw Ridge Park parking lot.

 

Haw Ridge Park, North Boundary Greenway, and Gallaher Bend Greenway will be closed periodically for Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area managed quota hunts this fall, a press release said.

The closure on Haw Ridge includes the portion of Melton Lake Greenway adjacent to the park, from the lake to the parking lot on Edgemoor Road, the press release said.

The hunts, which are open only to those pre-selected in a Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) quota drawing, will take place on the following dates: [Read more…]

Emergency crews use boat to rescue injured mountain biker

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

oak-ridge-fire-department-haw-ridge-bike-rescue-oct-16-2016

Emergency crews use a boat to rescue an injured mountain biker from Haw Ridge Park on Sunday, Oct. 16, 2016. (Submitted photo)

 

Emergency crews used a boat to rescue a mountain biker with a broken ankle in Haw Ridge Park on Sunday, authorities said.

The Oak Ridge Fire Department responded at 5:12 p.m. Sunday, October 16. Dispatchers had received a reported a man down on a Haw Ridge bike trail with a broken ankle.

The Oak Ridge 911 dispatchers were able to ping the caller’s cell phone and determine the approximate location of the accident, a press release said. They determined the biker was near the water on the southeast side of the trail.

Oak Ridge paramedics from Engine 3 and Rescue 1 began hiking to the incident while the rescue boat responded and was launched from Solway Park boat ramp. The ORFD boat located the patient within 25 minutes of the call, the press release said. [Read more…]

Tourism in Oak Ridge, Anderson County shows increased economic impact

Posted at
By 1 Comment

The economic impact of tourism in Anderson County and Oak Ridge has increased for a second year in a row.

In September, the Tennessee Department of Tourism Development released its 2015 annual report showing that visitors to Anderson County, which includes Oak Ridge, were responsible for spending more than $119 million in the county, an increase of 2.9 percent over the previous year, a press release said. Visitor spending in Anderson County yielded nearly $3 million in local sales tax.

“Marketing efforts continue to pay off as part of an organized effort to increase tourism in Oak Ridge and Anderson County,” Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank said in the press release. “Tourism is not only a way to increase our tax revenues, but the people who visit us positively add to the fabric and culture of our community—making tourism investment an all-around win.”

In its annual report, Explore Oak Ridge released data that showed Oak Ridge hotel revenue was up by 11 percent compared to the previous year (hotel revenue is a typical measure tourism’s economic effect on a city). Local tax generated from Oak Ridge hotels exceeded $585,000 in the 2015-16 fiscal year. [Read more…]

Motorcyclist injured in truck-motorcycle crash

Posted at
By 2 Comments

Edgemoor-Road-Motorcycle-and-Truck-Crash-June-23-2016

The Oak Ridge Police Department, Oak Ridge Fire Department, and other authorities and emergency medical services respond to a crash between a motorcycle and a tractor-trailer on Edgemoor Road at Haw Ridge Park on Thursday, June 23, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 1:52 p.m.

A motorcyclist was injured in a crash between a tractor-trailer and a motorcycle on Edgemoor Road on Thursday morning, authorities said.

The crash between an 18-wheeler and a motorcycle was reported at about 8:28 a.m. Thursday at Haw Ridge Park.

The name and condition of the motorcyclist and the type of motorcycle weren’t available Thursday morning. The motorcyclist was taken by ambulance to a hospital.

Oak Ridge Police Department Chief Jim Akagi said the motorcyclist was driving east on Edgemoor Road, headed toward Clinton Highway, when the motorcyclist appears to have passed the truck on the right, apparently on the shoulder of the road, as the eastbound tractor-trailer turned right into the parking lot at Haw Ridge. The motorcycle appears to have hit the truck on its passenger side, Akagi said. [Read more…]

Haw Ridge Park, greenways to be closed during TWRA hunts

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

City of Oak Ridge SealHaw Ridge Park and the North Boundary and Gallaher Bend greenways will be closed for hunts in the Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area on several dates starting this weekend, the City of Oak Ridge said.  The closure on Haw Ridge includes the portion of Melton Lake Greenway through the park, from the lake to the parking lot on Edgemoor Road.

The hunts will take place on the following dates:

  • October 31-November 1
  • November 14-15
  • December 12-13

[Read more…]

ORFD uses boat, cell phone signals to rescue mountain bikers lost at Haw Ridge

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Fire Department and Haw Ridge Rescue

The Oak Ridge Fire Department used cell phone signals and a search crew in a boat to rescue three lost mountain bikers at Haw Ridge Park on Sunday night.

 

Note: This story was updated at 3:45 p.m. June 15.

The Oak Ridge Fire Department used cell phone signals and a search crew in a boat to rescue mountain bikers lost at Haw Ridge Park after dark on Sunday.

Dispatchers received a call that the three young men were lost at about 10 p.m. Sunday. Three firefighters launched a large rescue boat stored at East Tennessee Technology Park, the former K-25 site, by about 10:45 p.m. from a boat ramp at Solway Park, which is near Haw Ridge Park.

Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley said the three had stayed on the trails past sunset and became disoriented.

“Without flashlights, they were unable to find their way back to the parking lot, so they called 911 for assistance,” Kerley said. [Read more…]