Oak Ridge Today

Man charged with reckless aggravated assault after crash seriously injures two, causes SUV to roll

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Matthew R. Gibson

Matthew R. Gibson

Note: This story was updated at 2:35 p.m. Jan. 25.

A 72-year-old Oak Ridge man has been charged with reckless aggravated assault after he allegedly drove at high speed in a pickup truck on a residential street, ignored a stop sign, and collided with a sport utility vehicle, causing it to roll and seriously injuring two people inside, authorities said.

Matthew R. Gibson, of South Purdue Avenue, was also cited for not having his driver’s license and for a stop sign violation.

His bond on the reckless aggravated assault charge was set at $20,000, and he remained jailed in the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton on Sunday morning.

The two-vehicle crash was reported at about 2:45 p.m. Saturday, January 16, at the intersection of Manhattan and North Purdue avenues in the Woodland neighborhood, behind Food City. [Read more…]

Four people injured after SUV rolls in two-vehicle crash

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Manhattan-North-Purdue-Crash-Jan-16-2016

Four people were injured in a two-vehicle crash that caused an SUV to roll at the intersection of Manhattan and North Purdue avenues in Woodland on Saturday afternoon, Jan. 16, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Four people were injured and one of them was flown to a hospital by a medical helicopter after a two-vehicle crash caused an SUV to roll at the intersection of Manhattan and North Purdue avenues on Saturday afternoon, authorities said.

The crash behind Food City was reported at about 2:45 p.m. Saturday. It took emergency workers about 30 minutes to remove a passenger trapped in the back seat of the GMC Envoy that rolled onto its top. The other vehicle was a Ford F150 pickup truck.

Three ambulances responded to the scene. So did the Oak Ridge Police Department and Oak Ridge Fire Department. A University of Tennessee Lifestar medical helicopter picked up one patient at Methodist Medical Center and flew that person to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville. [Read more…]

No one injured in electrical fire on Montana Avenue

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Montana-Avenue-Fire-Jan-14-2016

No one was injured in a fire on Montana Avenue on Thursday morning, Jan. 14, 2016. The fire appeared to have started on the home’s main electrical panel, which is in the garage, authorities said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 1:11 p.m.

No one was injured in a fire on Montana Avenue on Thursday morning that appeared to have started on the home’s main electrical panel, which is in the garage.

The fire was reported at about 10:44 a.m. Thursday.

“I had just come home from the store, and all of a sudden, I hear this loud roaring sound like wind,” homeowner Shirley McClain said.

But she couldn’t find the source of the noise. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Fire Department announces promotions, new firefighters

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Jody Durham

Jody Durham

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The Oak Ridge Fire Department recently held a ceremony to promote three officers and to introduce four new firefighters and their families to the organization. Congratulations to these recently promoted officers and new firefighters.

Jody Durham was promoted from battalion chief to assistant chief of operations. He has been with Oak Ridge Fire Department for more than 10 years. Durham has experience as a U.S. Department of Energy firefighter and as a paramedic with Morgan County Ambulance Service.

Eric Rackard

Eric Rackard

Eric Rackard was promoted from captain to battalion chief and is assigned as the A-Shift commander. He has been with Oak Ridge Fire Department for eight years, and he has served as a firefighter/engineer and paramedic.

Rackard is an Air Force veteran who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge offers safety tips for holiday season

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The Oak Ridge Fire Department released a few simple safety tips for the holidays on Tuesday.

Here are the tips: [Read more…]

Apartment building evacuated after carbon monoxide leak found

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Rolling-Hills-Apartments-Carbon-Monoxide-Leak-Dec-15-2015

Oak Ridge firefighters check apartments at Rolling Hills Apartments after a carbon monoxide leak was found in one building on Tuesday night, Dec. 15, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 10:05 a.m.

A three-story apartment building was evacuated and a 56-year-old woman was taken to the hospital after firefighters found a carbon monoxide leak in a boiler in the basement of the building on Tuesday night.

The cause of the leak in the boiler on Vanderbilt Drive wasn’t immediately clear. The boiler is used to heat water in that building, and it won’t be used again until it’s repaired and re-inspected, authorities said.

At about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, the Oak Ridge Fire Department received a call that a woman who lives directly above the boiler at Rolling Hills Apartments was dizzy and throwing up. Her father, who uses oxygen, told ORFD Captain Ray Burney that the family’s dog was “acting funny.” [Read more…]

Driver okay, but car totaled in single-vehicle rollover crash on Scarboro Road

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Scarboro-Road-Car-Roll-over-Dec-14-2015

The driver was okay, but his vehicle was reported to be totaled when it rolled over in a single-vehicle crash on Scarboro Road on Monday afternoon, Dec. 14, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The driver was reported to be okay, but his Honda Civic was reported to be totaled when it rolled over in a single-vehicle crash on Scarboro Road on Monday afternoon.

The crash occurred up the hill from Union Valley Road and the main entrance to the Y-12 National Security Complex. Authorities reported that the roadway was slick.

The Oak Ridge Police Department briefly closed the road while the crash was investigated and the car towed away.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Scarboro-Road-Car-Roll-over-Police-Fire-Dec-14-2015

The driver was reported to be okay, but his Honda Civic was reported to be totaled when it rolled over in a single-vehicle crash on Scarboro Road on Monday afternoon, Dec. 14, 2015. The Oak Ridge Fire Department and Oak Ridge Police Department both responded. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Copyright 2015 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Man injured in truck fire; others OK as fuel ignites

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Pickup-Truck-Fire-Briarcliff-Nov-27-2015

The driver of a pickup truck that caught on fire on Friday afternoon, Nov. 27, 2015, was taken to the hospital with minor burns, and emergency workers were not injured when fuel vapors ignited after the fire was first extinguished, authorities said. Pictured above are ORFD Battalion Chief Eric Rackard, left, and ORPD Officer Christopher Wallace. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The driver of a pickup truck that caught on fire Friday afternoon was taken to the hospital with minor burns, and emergency workers were not injured when fuel vapors ignited after the fire was first extinguished, authorities said.

The 62-year-old man tried to open the hood of the blue Ford Ranger and put out the fire with a fire extinguisher, said Oak Ridge Fire Department Battalion Chief Eric Rackard. The man, who was not identified, received minor burns on both hands.

The cause of the fire at Diversicare of Oak Ridge, on Elmhurst Drive near Hank’s Market on Emory Valley Road, was unknown.

But a fuel line on the engine ruptured, and gasoline vapors ignited while emergency workers tried to plug the line.

“Anytime you see that, you worry,” Rackard said. [Read more…]

Driver gone, but reports to ER later after vehicle goes off road, ignites

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South-Illinois-Avenue-Crash-Nov-20-2015

The driver was gone but reported to an emergency room later after a Ford Explorer went about 40 feet down an embankment along South Illinois Avenue and started on fire on Friday, Nov. 20, 2015, authorities said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The driver was gone when firefighters responded, but the driver reported to an emergency room later after a Ford Explorer went about 40 feet down an embankment along South Illinois Avenue and started on fire last Friday, authorities said.

The vehicle went down an embankment on the right side of the road headed down a big hill into central Oak Ridge, just south of Scarboro Road/Lafayette Drive, on Friday, November 20. The Explorer went sideways down the embankment as it went down the hill and ended up next to a culvert, Oak Ridge Fire Department Battalion Chief David Harrington said.

The northbound lanes of South Illinois Avenue were temporarily blocked as firefighters put out the vehicle fire. [Read more…]

Man taken to hospital, child not injured when truck, boat, trailer roll into water

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A man was taken to the hospital and a child was not injured when a pickup truck, boat, and trailer rolled backward into the Clinch River at Solway Park late Thursday afternoon, authorities said.

The man was pulling the boat out of the water when a young child inside the pickup truck knocked the vehicle out of gear, Oak Ridge Fire Department Battalion Chief David Harrington said. The truck and a boat and trailer that were attached rolled backward into the water at about 4:50 p.m. Thursday.

The man went into the water to get the child and was able to save the kid, who was not injured, but the man got cold from being in the water and was taken to the hospital for an evaluation, Harrington said. [Read more…]

Controlled burns scheduled on Oak Ridge Reservation

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The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office is starting a controlled burn of a small forestland area on the Oak Ridge Reservation for prescribed burning at the East Tennessee Technology Park and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Beginning Monday, November 16, weather permitting, a controlled burn was expected to take place on approximately four acres south of West Bear Creek Road near the DOE Central Training Facility southeast of ETTP.

The planned burn is being conducted as an effort to reduce the risk of wildfires and will be overseen by the State of Tennessee Division of Forestry, which maintains fire control equipment, certified burn managers, and trained personnel at the burn area with the support of the Oak Ridge Fire Department and the ORNL forester, a press release said.

Copyright 2015 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Family escapes, pets rescued from Delaware Avenue fire

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Randy Word and Jessica Millette Family at Delaware Avenue House Fire on Nov. 14, 2015

A family escaped from a house fire on Delaware Avenue on Saturday afternoon, Nov. 14, 2015, and dogs and a sugar glider were rescued. Pictured above from left are Zaresa, Demetrion, Randy Word, and Akeyrha. Also pictured are two of the three dogs that live at the home, Scale, front, and Breezy, back. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 3:13 p.m.

A family escaped and pets were rescued from a house fire on Delaware Avenue on Saturday afternoon.

The fire was reported at 12:09 p.m. Saturday.

Resident Jessica Millette said a neighbor banged on the door and yelled: “Get out! Get out!”

She went to investigate and saw flames at the back door of the house at 401 Delaware Avenue.

“I yelled, ‘Get out! Get out!,'” Millette said. “There’s fire!” [Read more…]