A 72-year-old Knoxville man died in a single-vehicle crash on Clinton Highway in Anderson County on Tuesday, authorities said.
Harvey R. Weldon was driving north in a 2009 Ford Focus on Clinton Highway near Lonesome Dove Road at about 6:36 p.m. Tuesday, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said in a preliminary report.
“While negotiating a curve to the left, the vehicle traveled off the east side of the roadway, entered a ditch, and struck a culvert,” the report said. [Read more…]
There were nine non-injury traffic crashes and one wreck with injuries in Anderson County during the Wednesday snowstorm, authorities said.
The one crash with injury was on Clinton Highway (U.S. Highway 25W) near White Loop Road at about 6:33 p.m. Wednesday. It was the only serious crash during the snow, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said. The Sheriff’s Department responded along with the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Anderson County Emergency Medical Services, Anderson County Rescue Squad, and the Claxton Fire Department.
The THP said the road was covered by snow and slush when a 2005 Ford Freestar driven west by Gregory Brantley, 34, of Detroit, slid sideways across the road into the path of an eastbound 2016 Toyota 4Runner driven by Lauren Holder, 28, of Clinton.
The Freestar driven by Brantley hit the front of the 4Runner driver by Holder, the THP said in a preliminary report. [Read more…]
An Oliver Springs man is facing charges, including driving under the influence, after a head-on collision injured three people in two vehicles on Highway 61 west of Oliver Springs late Friday afternoon. (Photo by Tom Scott)
OLIVER SPRINGS—An Oliver Springs man is facing charges, including driving under the influence, after a head-on collision injured three people in two vehicles on Highway 61 west of Oliver Springs late Friday afternoon, authorities said.
Ryan P. Price, 33, of Oliver Springs, will be charged with DUI, vehicular assault, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of a firearm while under the influence, a due care violation, failure to maintain lane, violation of the financial responsibility law, and a failure to carry registration, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
The THP said a 2003 Dodge Durango driven by Price was traveling east in the westbound lane on State Route 61 near Scandlyn Hollow Road in Roane County at about 4:55 p.m. Friday.
A 2014 Jeep Wrangler driven west by Rodger Mattox, 66, of Oliver Springs, was also in the westbound lane, which was its travel lane, the THP said. [Read more…]
Two teenagers were injured in an ATV crash in Coalfield in Morgan County at about 3:16 p.m. Friday, Nov. 27, 2015, and one was flown to a hospital by a UT Lifestar medical helicopter that landed in Oliver Springs, authorities said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was last updated at 9 a.m. Nov. 28.
OLIVER SPRINGS—Two teenagers were injured in a two-vehicle ATV crash in Coalfield in Morgan County on Friday afternoon, and one of them was flown to a hospital by a medical helicopter that landed in Oliver Springs, authorities said.
The teenager flown to the hospital is a 14-year-old who had been driving a 2007 Suzuki Eiger 400 on Back Petros Road at about 3:16 p.m. Friday, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said. It was headed in the same direction as a second all-terrain vehicle, a Honda Recon driven by another 14-year-old.
But the right front tire of the Suzuki ran into the left rear tire of the Honda as the two vehicles were going around a curve, a THP preliminary report said.
The 14-year-old driving the Suzuki then lost control of the ATV, and it overturned, the THP said. The driver was wearing a helmet, but had multiple injuries, the THP said. A 15-year-old passenger in the Suzuki was not wearing a helmet and was injured, the report said. [Read more…]
Nine students were injured after a Roane County school bus went off the right side of the road and rolled on its side down a steep embankment on a curvy, country road southwest of Oliver Springs on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was last updated at 4 p.m. Oct. 22.
ROANE COUNTY—Nine students were injured after a Roane County school bus dropped off the right side of Mahoney Road and rolled onto its right side down a steep embankment on a curvy, country road southwest of Oliver Springs on Wednesday afternoon.
Two middle school students were taken to Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge by ambulance, and a third student, possibly also a middle school student, was transported by a parent, said Gary Aytes, Roane County Schools superintendent. The injuries were not life-threatening, Aytes said. He said one student might have a broken arm, and the others had cuts and abrasions.
Thursday update: The Tennessee Highway Patrol later reported that nine students were taken to Methodist Medical Center in Oak Ridge. Two were transported by ambulance, and the other seven were taken in private vehicles.
The crash was reported in the 600 block of Mahoney Road, just west of Johnson Road, at about 3:50 p.m. Wednesday. There were 22 children on the bus from Oliver Springs High School, Oliver Springs Middle School, and Dyllis Springs Elementary School in Roane County. [Read more…]
Police say the driver of this silver Infiniti fled on foot after a three-car crash at North Illinois Avenue and West Outer Drive on Monday night, just a few hours after a shooting was reported a short distance away on Wakefield Road, the third shooting there in 48 hours. Police have since described the driver as a person of interest in the Monday night shooting and crash. Pictured above at center are ORPD officers James Elkins and Garrett Robbins. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was last updated at 12:35 p.m.
A shooting was reported on Wakefield Road on Monday evening, the third shooting on the street in 48 hours. The shooting was followed a few hours later by a three-car crash at the intersection of West Outer Drive and North Illinois Avenue. Police couldn’t immediately say if the two events were connected.
There didn’t appear to be any injuries in the shooting, which occurred sometime between about 8:15 and 8:30 p.m. and left some 21 casings in the street. Residents in one Wakefield Road home said two bullets pierced a bedroom, but fortunately, no one was in it at the time.
Authorities said minor injuries were reported in the crash, which was reported at about 10:15 p.m. near the Ian’s Market gas station and convience store. One person reportedly fled from the crash, and one witness said the man darted into a wooded area behind the east corner of Ian’s Market, headed north toward Oliver Springs.
The Oak Ridge Police Department and Anderson County Sheriff’s Department swarmed the area. An ACSD canine unit responded to help search for the person of interest, but as of early Tuesday morning, officers hadn’t found the man. [Read more…]
Safety Fest TN will hold safety demonstrations that are open to the public next week, including an auto rollover simulation, a slip simulator, and a tree stand safety demonstration.
The demonstrations will be in the parking lot at the New Hope Center, at the front of Y-12 National Security Complex, at 602 Scarboro Road from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday, September 15.
The free demonstrations are in conjunction with more than 60 safety classes that will be conducted during the week of September 14-18 at six locations in Oak Ridge and Knoxville. The classes are free of charge to those who register. [Read more…]
Authorities said the three Oak Ridge High School football players injured in a Tuesday afternoon crash were not wearing seat belts, and the driver has been charged after the car he was driving crashed into a utility pole in Blount County.
Preliminary information from the Tennessee Highway Patrol said the 2000 Ford Taurus was being driven northbound on U.S. 321, also known as Lamar Alexander Parkway, by a 17-year-old unidentified juvenile from Oak Ridge, when the male driver let the vehicle exit the northbound lane, where it then entered into the center turning lane.
“The driver then crossed over the turn lane and entered into the southbound lanes of Highway 321,” the THP said. “The vehicle then crossed over both the southbound lanes and shoulder, where it struck a curb before it entered into a grass field area. The vehicle then struck a high spot of earth in the field, which made the vehicle go airborne.” [Read more…]
The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department sent deputies to provide security at the National Guard Armory in Clinton and to the area around the Tennessee Valley Authority facilities at Norris Dam and Bull Run Fossil Plant in Claxton after officials learned of the fatal shootings at military centers in Chattanooga on Thursday.
Additional deputies were also sent to the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton and to county government buildings, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said.
He said the Tennessee Highway Patrol notified the ACSD on Thursday morning, July 16, about the unfolding events in Chattanooga.
“We informed all of our local police departments of this information,” Lucas said. “Our dispatch was also in contact with the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency State Emergency Operations Center in Nashville.” [Read more…]
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…]
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…]
Olin Elwood Fitton
The body of the five-year-old boy who went missing Wednesday afternoon was found in a pond near his family’s home in Anderson County, authorities said.
Ground search teams working with K-9s tracked the missing child, Odin Elwood Fitton, to a pond in the creek near the family home on Brushy Valley Road, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said.
“Our dive team was called to search the water, and sadly, the child’s body was found,” Lucas said Wednesday night.
Odin was reported missing at about 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, and ground and air searches began shortly after that. His family’s home is in the 1600 block of Brushy Valley Road near Interstate 75. [Read more…]
