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Some roads, including part of Turnpike, to be closed for Veterans Parade on Saturday

Posted at 10:40 am June 5, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Some roads, including part of Oak Ridge Turnpike, will be closed for a Veterans Parade on Saturday morning. The parade is part of the Secret City Festival celebration this week.

The road closures were announced by the City of Oak Ridge and Oak Ridge Police Department.

The Veterans Parade route will run from the Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) parking lot off of Badger Avenue to ORAU Way. Participants will then make a right turn onto Oak Ridge Turnpike and end in the Oak Ridge Public Library parking lot. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge Tagged With: Badger Avenue, City of Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Police Department, Oak Ridge Turnpike, ORAU Way, road closures, Robertsville Road, Veterans Parade

Monday night standoff with police ends with no injuries

Posted at 5:14 pm December 19, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A Monday night standoff with police ended with no injuries, authorities said.

It started when the Oak Ridge Police Department responded to conduct a welfare check at a home in the 100 block of Robertsville Road at about 5:44 p.m. Monday.

“When officers attempted to make contact with the person inside the home, they observed a man in a crouched position holding an object that may have been a firearm,” the Oak Ridge Police Department said.

“Crisis negotiators were called to the scene to assist, but the individual threatened officers and refused to come out of the house,” the ORPD said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Top Stories Tagged With: Oak Ridge Police Department, ORPD, Robertsville Road, standoff, welfare check

Crews working to restore power on west end

Posted at 11:19 pm January 3, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

louisiana-avenue-tree-on-power-line-jan-3-2017

A fallen tree or trees knocked down power lines along Louisiana Avenue on Tuesday night, Jan. 3, 2017, and crews were working to restore power in west Oak Ridge on the north side of Oak Ridge Turnpike, including the area around Louisiana Avenue and Robertsville Road. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 12:50 a.m.

Crews were working to restore power on the west end of Oak Ridge on Tuesday night, including in the area around Louisiana Avenue and Robertsville Road.

A fallen tree or trees knocked down power lines along Louisiana Avenue north of Robertsville Road, and crews were working to restore power on the north side of Oak Ridge Turnpike. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge, Top Stories Tagged With: City of Oak Ridge, fallen trees, Lasalle Road, Louisiana Avenue, power outage, restore power, Robertsville Road, west Oak Ridge

Man rescues woman from porch during house fire on Robertsville Road

Posted at 9:25 am March 26, 2016
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

TJ Giles and Jacky Smith at Robertsville Road House Fire on March 25, 2016

Oak Ridge Fire Department Investigator Thomas (T.J.) Giles, left, talks to Jacky Smith, who carried a woman from a porch during a house fire on Robertsville Road on Friday evening, March 25, 2016. (Photo by Tom Scott)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 10:20 a.m.

An Oak Ridge man rescued a disoriented woman from a porch during a house fire on Robertsville Road on Friday evening, authorities said.

The fire was reported at 7:22 p.m. Friday at 394 Robertsville Road.

Firefighters found heavy fire and smoke coming from the windows and attic of the home when they arrived, Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley said.

Jacky L. Smith, of Oak Ridge, said he was driving west on Robertsville Road when he noticed smoke coming from the house. He turned around and found Ruth Stewart sitting on her front porch confused. He asked Stewart if she knew her house was on fire and she replied, “Yes, I was cooking, and the stove caught on fire,” Kerley said in a press release. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Fire, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Slider Tagged With: Darryl Kerley, fire, Jacky L. Smith, Robertsville Road, Ruth Stewart

Wanted fugitive arrested in joint operation with ACSD, ORPD SWAT team

Posted at 9:06 pm November 18, 2015
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Robertsville-Road-Raid-Officers-Nov-18-2015-2

A wanted fugitive was arrested Wednesday afternoon, Nov. 18, 2015, in a joint operation by the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department and the Oak Ridge Police Department. The operation involved the deployment of the ORPD SWAT team at a home on Robertsville Road. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A wanted fugitive was arrested Wednesday afternoon in a joint operation by the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department and the Oak Ridge Police Department. The operation involved the deployment of the ORPD SWAT team at a home on Robertsville Road.

ACSD Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said deputies received information that Jesse Lee Shackelford, 32, was in the home. Shackelford was wanted on seven outstanding warrants that included felony charges and was reported to be armed with a handgun, Lucas said.

Jesse-Lee-Shackelford

Jesse Lee Shackelford

Deputies and officers surrounded the home, and ORPD SWAT was called to the scene. ORPD SWAT members entered the residence and arrested Shackelford without incident, Lucas said. He said Shackelford was found to be armed with not one but two handguns.

Additional charges for drug and weapons offenses will be forthcoming, Lucas said. Shackelford was also wanted in Knox County on warrants. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police, Police and Fire, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Sheriff's Department, Jesse Lee Shackelford, Mark Lucas, Oak Ridge Police Department, ORPD SWAT, Robertsville Road, wanted fugitive

City releases IDs in parking lot crash that killed one, injured nine

Posted at 10:51 am July 6, 2015
By John Huotari 2 Comments

Midtown Community Crash Cars

One person died and nine people were injured when a Dodge Ram pickup truck backing up in the parking lot at Midtown Community Center caused a nine-vehicle crash after fireworks in Oak Ridge on Saturday night.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 12:17 p.m.

The Oak Ridge Police Department has identified James Robinson, 37, of Knoxville, as the man who died in the parking lot crash that killed one person and injured nine others at Midtown Community Center after fireworks on Saturday.

Robinson was struck by a Dodge Ram pickup truck driven by Lee Cromwell, 65, of Oak Ridge, as Cromwell backed his truck through the parking lot, a City of Oak Ridge press release said. Nine people were injured, and eight vehicles were hit by Cromwell’s truck, authorities said.

Robinson was critically injured in the crash, and he was taken by ambulance to Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge, where he later died, the press release said.

A family friend said Robinson, who was with his wife and two daughters, died a hero by pushing his oldest daughter Jaide out of the way of the way of the approaching vehicle.

Seven more patients were taken by ambulance from the scene to local area hospitals. One adult and two juvenile patients with non-life threatening injuries were transported to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville. Four juvenile patients with non-life threatening injuries were taken to East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, which is also in Knoxville. And two adults who were also injured were transported to Methodist Medical Center in personal vehicles.

Cromwell was not injured. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police, Police and Fire, Slider Tagged With: accident, Alvin K. Bissell Park, Anderson County Sheriff's Department, City of Oak Ridge, Clinton Police Department, crash, East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, fireworks, James Robinson, Lee Cromwell, Methodist Medical Center, Midtown Community Center, Oak Ridge Fire Department, Oak Ridge Police Department, Oak Ridge Turnpike, parking lot crash, Robertsville Road, Tennessee Highway Patrol, University of Tennessee Medical Center

Man dies, others injured in multi-vehicle crash at Midtown Community Center

Posted at 2:42 am July 5, 2015
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Midtown Community Center Crash Reconstruction

A man died and at least a half-dozen people went to the hospital after a mutli-vehicle crash in the parking lot of Midtown Community Center after fireworks in Oak Ridge on Saturday night. Above, an accident reconstruction team works in the pouring rain at Midtown Community Center on Robertsville Road at about 2 a.m. Sunday. At right is Oak Ridge Police Department Officer Grant Gouldie.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 10:15 p.m.

One person died after a multi-vehicle crash in the parking lot of Midtown Community Center sent at least a half-dozen people to the hospital after fireworks in Oak Ridge on Saturday night, authorities said.

The man who died has a Knoxville address, but police aren’t identifying him yet because family members are still being notified. It appeared that the man was on foot at the time of the crash, authorities said. The man who died was with his wife and children, Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi said.

Akagi said at least six people, including two children, were sent to three hospitals in three ambulances. The injured were taken to Methodist Medical Center in Oak Ridge and Children’s Hospital and University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville. Their names and conditions weren’t immediately available.

Akagi said a pickup involved in the crash hit several vehicles, although it’s not clear how the man who died was injured.

It’s also not clear how fast the red Dodge pickup truck was going or whether it was backing up, he said. Witnesses said the truck had been parked at the east end of the parking lot facing east, or away from the entrance, and the driver backed up to leave as soon as fireworks were over. Witnesses said the truck was in reverse and driving fast. So far, authorities have been unable to confirm that.

“We don’t know what happened,” Akagi said.

But the truck’s back end appeared to have struck at least one vehicle.

Akagi said there were at least a half-dozen vehicles involved in the crash. He said he didn’t know if any other vehicles were moving at the time of the collision. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police, Police and Fire, Slider Tagged With: accident reconstruction, Adam Daugherty, Alvin K. Bissell Park, Anderson County Sheriff's Department, Clinton Police Department, crash, Darryl Kerley, Dave Clark, fireworks, Grant Gouldie, Jim Akagi, Mark Lucas, Midtown Community Center, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Police Department, Oak Ridge Turnpike, ORPD, Robertsville Road, Tennessee Highway Patrol, Wildcat Den

Updated: Driver charged with DUI in four-car crash that damaged home

Posted at 1:54 am February 20, 2015
By John Huotari 2 Comments

Robertsville Road Car and House Crash

No one was injured in a crash involving four vehicles and a house on Robertsville Road on Thursday night.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 4:20 p.m.

The driver of a car that allegedly caused a four-vehicle crash and damaged a home on Robertsville Road has been charged with driving under the influence, authorities said.

Officers located Brandon Kyle Baez, 18, of Oak Ridge, after he walked away from the crash at 184 Robertsville Road and tried to hide in a wooded area, Oak Ridge Police Department Officer Ben Higgins said in a warrant.

The crash occurred at about 10:40 p.m. Thursday just east of North Illinois Avenue. An SUV-type vehicle driven by Baez allegedly left the road, drove through the front yard of one home on Robertsville Road, crashed into a Ford four-door sedan parked in the driveway, and pushed it about three or four car lengths into a neighbor’s front yard—and reportedly caused a collision with two cars parked in the neighbor’s driveway (the home of Mike and Judy Coen).

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Police and Fire, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: alcohol, Anderson County Detention Facility, Anderson County General Sessions Court, Ben Higgins, Brandon Kyle Baez, crash, driving under the influence, four-car crash, Grant Gouldie, Judy Coen, Mike Coen, Oak Ridge Fire Department, Oak Ridge Police Department, ORPD, Robertsville Road, Todd Derrick, warrant

Photos: Demolition of Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church

Posted at 12:53 pm November 23, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church Sanctuary Demolition

Workers demolished the former Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church at Oak Ridge Turnpike and Robertsville Road on Monday. Pictured above at right is the stone-and-glass west end of the sanctuary. (Photos by Peter Scheffler)

 

Workers demolished the former Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church at Oak Ridge Turnpike and Robertsville Road on Monday. The congregation has moved to a new church at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike, on the north side of the Joe L. Evins Federal Building, home to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office.

Church members agreed in September 2012 to sell their former site, which they had used for almost six decades, to make way for a new Kroger Marketplace shopping center.

The new UU church was dedicated in October. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Churches, Community, Community, Faith, Media, Photos, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: demolition, Kroger, Kroger Marketplace, Oak Ridge Turnpike, Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church, ORUUC, Peter Scheffler, Robertsville Road

Last rummage sale at current Unitarian Universalist Church on Aug. 1, 2

Posted at 12:33 am July 26, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church Sanctuary

The sanctuary of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church is pictured above. (File photo)

The Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church will have its last rummage sale at its current location near the new Kroger Marketplace on Robertsville Road on August 1 and 2.

The church is moving from its longtime home there to a new location between Oak Ridge Turnpike and the Joe L. Evins Federal Building, where the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office is housed. The UU church property on Robertsville Road will become part of the Kroger shopping center, known as the Westcott Center.

The semiannual rummage at the Robertsville Road location will be from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, August 1, and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, August 2. Prices are doubled on Friday evening for the sneak preview sale, a press release said.

ORUUC is located at 1500 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

“This will be the last rummage sale in our current location, but plans are already under way to resume the long tradition of having rummage sales starting next year in the church’s new location at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike,” said Betsy Bauer, who for more than two decades has been the sale organizer. “Being advocates for recycling and repurposing, this sale saves items from loading our landfills, and instead finds a home with someone who can reuse it.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: Churches, Community, Front Page News Tagged With: Betsy Bauer, Joe L. Evins Federal Building, Kroger Marketplace, Oak Ridge Office, Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Chuch, ORUUC, Robertsville Road, rummage sale, U.S. Department of Energy

More red-light, speeding violations since cameras disabled, Redflex says

Posted at 7:53 pm June 12, 2014
By John Huotari 42 Comments

Red-light Camera at Oak Ridge Turnpike and New York Avenue

Redflex Traffic Systems Inc. said an eastbound traffic camera at Oak Ridge Turnpike and New York Avenue/Lafayette Drive had the third-highest rise in detected speeding violations, a 243 percent increase in the number of drivers traveling at 46 mph or more, after the cameras were disabled April 21. Pictured above is the westbound camera.

 

The Arizona company that operated traffic cameras in Oak Ridge for five years said reckless driving has increased significantly, average speeds have risen, and there has been an increase in red-light running and speeding violations since the systems were disabled April 21.

The two biggest increases in speeding violations were in school zones on eastbound and westbound Robertsville Road near Willow Brook Elementary School, camera vendor Redflex Traffic Systems Inc. said in a report that could be discussed during a Traffic Safety Advisory Board meeting on Tuesday. The average number of school zone violations jumped from a little more than two per day in the 14 days before the cameras were disabled to 10 or 11 per day afterward.

A school zone violation occurs when a driver is detected traveling at 21 mph or more in a 15 mph school zone.

Meanwhile, detections of red-light violations, which can lead to the most serious accidents, increased from an average of 20 per day at four locations in the three weeks before the cameras were disabled to up to 28 per day in the fourth week afterward, Redflex said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Government, Government, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: Civic Center, high school, Lafayette Drive, New York Avenue, North Illinois Avenue, Oak Ridge City Council, Oak Ridge Turnpike, reckless driving, red light cameras, red light violations, red-light running, Redflex, Redflex Traffic Systems Inc., Robertsville Road, school zone violations, speed enforcement cameras, speeding violation, traffic cameras, Traffic Safety Advisory Board, TSAB, Willow Brook Elementary School

Guest column: Analysis of traffic camera information

Posted at 4:46 pm March 24, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Guest Columns 1 Comment

By Dale Gedcke

The referenced documents were downloaded from the Oak Ridge City Council posting in advance of the (Feb. 24) work session. The numbers quoted below were calculated from the data supplied in the referenced report.

Accident Rates During 2013

Using the total crashes listed in the report, and the number of detected vehicles through the pertinent camera locations from both directions, the accident rates during 2013 were:

  • Oak Ridge Turnpike at Civic Center: 2.58 accidents per million vehicles
  • North Illinois Avenue at Robertsville Road: 0.90 accidents per million vehicles
  • Oak Ridge Turnpike at Lafayette Drive/New York Avenue: 1.8 accidents per million vehicles
  • Robertsville Road at Iroquois Avenue/Willow Brook School: 0.00 accidents per million vehicles
  • Total of all four locations: 1.68 accidents per million vehicles [Read more…]

Filed Under: Guest Columns, Opinion Tagged With: accident rates, accidents, camera tickets, Civic Center, Dale Gedcke, intersections, Lafayette Drive, New York Avenue, North Illinois Avenue, Oak Ridge City Council, Oak Ridge Turnpike, red-light infractions, Redflex, Robertsville Road, speed limits, speed violations, speeds, traffic camera, Willow Brook

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Classifieds

Availability of the draft environmental assessment for off-site depleted uranium manufacturing (DOE/EA-2252)

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the … [Read More...]

Public Notice: NNSA announces no significant impact of Y-12 Development Organization operations at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

ADFAC seeks contractors for five homes

Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties (ADFAC) is a non-profit community based agency, … [Read More...]

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