Oak Ridge Today

High water reported, part of Airport Road closed as more rain expected

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Image courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown

Image courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown

 

OLIVER SPRINGS—High water was reported in parts of Anderson County and a short section of Airport Road on the east side of Oliver Springs was closed as rain continued to fall Saturday night.

More than two inches of rain was expected in the area between Saturday afternoon and Sunday night, according to the National Weather Service in Morristown.

“Please use caution while traveling and allow extra time,” the National Weather Service said. “Remember, never drive through a flooded roadway. Turn around, don’t drown!”

There were reports that a vehicle had driven into the water flowing over Airport Road, but there were no immediate reports of injuries and it wasn’t clear if a rescue had been required. Airport Road floods regularly during heavy rains, and people sometimes try to drive through it and then get stuck. [Read more…]

Latest on Hurricane Irma: Expected impacts in Tennessee Valley

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The forecast for Hurricane Irma and its expected impacts across East Tennessee, southwest Virginia, and southwest North Carolina as of Saturday afternoon, Sept. 9, 2017. (Image courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown)

The forecast for Hurricane Irma and its expected impacts across East Tennessee, southwest Virginia, and southwest North Carolina as of Saturday afternoon, Sept. 9, 2017. (Image courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown)

 

The National Weather Service in Morristown on Saturday afternoon released updated information on the expected impacts of Hurricane Irma in East Tennessee, southwest Virginia, and southwest North Carolina.

The strong winds and outer rain bands of the hurricane, which has weakened to a Category 3 storm from an earlier Category 5, started hitting the Florida Keys on Saturday as officials warned of a potentially deadly storm surge in southern Florida.

The storm track appeared to have moved farther west than originally forecast, and Hurricane Irma was expected to now have a bigger impact on central and western Florida as it moved up the peninsula.

The remnants of the storm, which had sustained winds of 125 mph on Saturday afternoon, are expected to move across the southeast United States and into the Tennessee Valley, possibly starting Monday afternoon and continuing through Tuesday, with scattered showers through Thursday. [Read more…]

NWS: Hurricane Irma could lead to rain, wind, rising rivers in region

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Here is the latest on Hurricane Irma and its impacts across East Tennessee from the National Weather Service in Morristown, Tennessee. (Image courtesy NWS)

Here is the latest on Hurricane Irma and its possible impacts across East Tennessee next week from the National Weather Service in Morristown, Tennessee. (Image courtesy NWS)

 

Hurricane Irma is expected to move north across the southeast United States into the Tennessee Valley early next week, and it could bring rain and wind gusts, and cause some rivers to rise, according to the National Weather Service in Morristown, Tennessee.

Hurricane Irma, which has been downgraded to a Category 4 storm, could hit the Florida Keys by late Saturday and heavily populated areas of South Florida on Sunday morning. The deadly hurricane pushed through the Bahamas and onto Cuba on Friday, and it has already caused destruction across the Caribbean.

Current forecasts show Hurricane Irma traveling up the center of the Florida peninsula before hitting Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee, among other states.

The National Weather Service in Morristown said the exact path across the Tennessee Valley is uncertain, which will affect the location and timing of the expected impacts. [Read more…]

Current too strong for regatta on Oak Ridge rowing course, forcing cancellation

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RowingCourse Destruction_3414

The destruction of the Oak Ridge rowing course is pictured above after heavy rains in the past week led to flooding and now strong currents on the Clinch River, causing the cancellation of the Dogwood Regatta on April 29-30, 2017. (Photo courtesy Explore Oak Ridge)

 

The strong current on the Oak Ridge rowing course forced the cancellation of the Dogwood Regatta this weekend, April 29-30, a press release said.

“The rain over the last several days has caused major flooding in the area,” said Sarah McAuliffe, Oak Ridge Rowing Association regatta director. “The current is about 10 times the norm and has done damage to our race course and other infrastructure, but the larger issue is athlete safety. “

The Tennessee Valley Authority and the U.S. Coast Guard have confirmed that the water flow rate will remain too high for safe rowing regatta operations over the weekend, the press release said. [Read more…]

Dogwood Jr. Regatta canceled due to increased water flow, unsafe rowing conditions

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Dogwood Regatta

This story was updated at 9:55 a.m.

The Dogwood Junior Championship Regatta scheduled for this weekend has been canceled due to increased water flow on Melton Hill Lake and unsafe rowing conditions, the Oak Ridge Rowing Association said on Twitter.

All coaches received a cancellation notice by email through Regatta Central.

“We regretfully announce this cancellation,” the Rowing Association said. “Thank you for all support and understanding that our main goal is to keep rowers safe.” [Read more…]

Flooding, fallen trees, road closures reported in Anderson County during storms

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The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department had a busy weekend after the rain started on Friday, Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said.

Flooding occurred throughout the county, Lucas said. There were trees that had fallen on homes but no reports of injuries. High water forced the closure of several roads. Many of those were still closed Monday morning.

“The water is receding, but drivers are urged to continue to use caution,” Lucas said. “Due to all of the flooded roads, Anderson County Schools were closed today (Monday, April 24).”

Deputies responded to 25 traffic hazard reports from Friday through Sunday. These included fallen trees and other debris in the roadway. Mudslides were also reported on at least two roads, Lucas said. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge received more than 6.3 inches of rain during storms, city says

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Fallen Tree House April 2017 Storms 1

Oak Ridge received more than 6.3 inches of rain during the storms this past weekend, officials said Monday, April 24, 2017. That amount of rain made the ground extremely soggy and caused large trees to start falling all across the area, the city said. Several homes and cars were damaged, and there were reports of power outages. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

 

Oak Ridge received more than 6.3 inches of rain during the storms this past weekend, officials said.

That amount of rain made the ground extremely soggy and caused large trees to start falling all across the area, the city said. Several homes and cars were damaged, and there were reports of power outages.

Power was nearly 100 percent restored, but the cleanup was still under way Monday afternoon. [Read more…]

Anderson, Roane schools closed Monday; Briceville Highway closed due to ‘slide issues’

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State Route 116 in Anderson County, also known as Briceville Highway, is closed at Hawkins Road due to “slide issues,” the Tennessee Department of Transportation said Sunday. Also Sunday, Anderson County Schools and Roane County Schools both announced they will be closed Monday.

TDOT said traffic on Briceville Highway is being diverted to county roads.

“Use caution in this area,” TDOT said.

Hawkins Road is southwest of Rocky Top (the former Lake City) and northeast of Briceville.

Briceville Highway had earlier been reported to be closed in Briceville due to sinking pavement on Sunday afternoon. [Read more…]

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

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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…]

Letter: Please contribute to help firefighters, first responders

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To the Editor:

We’ve all been praying for rain, perhaps several times a day. This drought has been affecting our area for over four months now.

Because it’s been so dry, there’s been a ban on fires. You’ve heard the reports: No open fires. No fire pits or campfires. No grilling whether charcoal or gas. No throwing down a cigarette butt. No burning of brush or rubbish.

If you were going to ask, the answer would be a simple “NO!”

As a result, someone has, or did because they figured it was OK. Whether it was intentional or not. It happened. Fires popped up here and there. On the mountain side, at the campground, someone’s backyard, or even a spark from an engine. [Read more…]

As drought continues, Weather Service forecasting rain, some heavy

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rainfall-forecast-nov-28-2016-large

A series of low pressure systems will produce periods of rain, some occassionally heavy, from Monday through Wednesday. Totals exceeding three inches are possible near Chattanooga and Knoxville, while the Bristol/Tri-Cities area could see up to two inches of rain. (Image by National Weather Service in Morristown)

 

After months without a heavy rain, the National Weather Service in Morristown is forecasting that a series of low pressure systems will produce periods of rain, some occassionally heavy, from Monday through Wednesday.

“Totals exceeding three inches are possible near Chattanooga and Knoxville, while the Bristol/Tri-Cities area could see up to two inches of rain,” the National Weather Service said.

The last rainfall of more than one inch in the Knoxville area was July 5, or more than four months ago, according to the Weather Service. [Read more…]

Weather Service: Few inches of rain possible next week

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wetting-rains-possible-next-week-nov-26-2016

Image by National Weather Service in Morristown

 

A few inches of rain are possible starting Monday in areas hardest hit by the drought, according to the National Weather Service in Morristown.

That would be a reversal of a months-long trend as a drought persists in the Southeast. The Knoxville area hasn’t had more than one inch of rain in more than four months, or 142 days, the National Weather Service said. The last time Knoxville had more than one inch of rain was July 5.

The Weather Service said a slow-moving upper-level storm system will start affecting the region during the early to middle part of next week.

“Good chances for some beneficial rains will exist late Monday through Wednesday evening,” forecasters said. [Read more…]