Oak Ridge Today

Clarksville woman taken to UT hospital after driver falls asleep, car rolls

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A Clarksville woman was taken by ambulance to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville early Sunday after the driver of a car in which she was riding fell asleep, and the vehicle rolled, went airborne, and struck a series of objects on South Illinois Avenue in Oak Ridge, including a tree and utility pole, authorities said.

The 2011 Toyota Camry four-door sedan was headed north in the right-hand lane of South Illinois Avenue at about 3:30 a.m. Sunday when it first struck a right-hand curb at Centrifuge Way, the former Boeing Road, an Oak Ridge Police Department crash report said. The car then entered a median, rolled over onto its passenger side, struck a utility pole and an embankment, and became airborne, the report said. The vehicle then struck a second curb, became airborne again, struck a tree and embankment at the same time, and came to rest at the bottom of a second embankment. [Read more…]

THP investigating hit-and-run involving car, pedestrian on Old Batley Road

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Information from WYSH Radio

The Tennessee Highway Patrol is investigating a hit and run accident that occurred Monday evening in Oliver Springs and sent a man to the hospital.

Derek Jones, 23, said he was jogging on Old Batley Road at around 6:45 p.m. Monday when a small, black car hit him from behind. Jones landed on the hood of the car and struck the windshield, but the driver fled the scene without stopping. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge woman dies in three-car crash in Alcoa

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An Oak Ridge woman died in a three-car crash in Alcoa on Monday morning, authorities said.

Claire B. Milner, 20, was taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center after the crash on Alcoa Highway at Willow Road at 9:45 a.m. Monday, but she died of her injuries, the Alcoa Police Department said.

Milner had been driving a 2000 Ford Focus on Willow Road and had apparently stopped at the stop sign, then attempted to cross the southbound lanes of Alcoa Highway to turn left onto northbound Alcoa Highway, the APD said in a news release. Milner’s Focus was struck in the driver’s door by a 2006 Toyota Tacoma pickup truck driven by Zackary A. Presnell, 33, of Knoxville, who was traveling south on Alcoa Highway, in the left lane of travel. [Read more…]

Knoxville man dies in crash on Bethel Valley Road

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A Knoxville man died in a Wednesday night crash on Bethel Valley Road east of Spallation Drive at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, authorities said.

John Kirkpatrick was driving eastbound in a 2001 Honda CRV when it apparently went off the south side of Bethel Valley Road and hit a tree, the Oak Ridge Police Department said after an initial investigation. Kirkpatrick was the vehicle’s only occupant, and he was found dead at the scene, a press release said. [Read more…]

Roane County man accidentally shoots self

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Information from WYSH Radio

A Roane County man was injured Sunday evening when a .22-caliber rifle went off accidentally and shot him in the chest.

The incident occurred at around 5 p.m. at a home on Edwards Lane outside Rockwood. The victim, whose name was not immediately available, was flown to the University of Tennessee Medical Center by Lifestar for treatment of his injuries.

Deputies said the shooting appears to have happened as the man was handling the rifle and that it was purely accidental in nature.

Two taken to UT hospital after five-vehicle crash between Clinton, Oak Ridge

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Two people were taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center after a five-vehicle crash on State Highway 61 between Oak Ridge and Clinton on Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.

The collision occurred at about 3:30 p.m. on SR 61 near Old Tacora Road, in front of Gibbs Ferry Park. According to preliminary information, it appears an elderly female was traveling eastbound on Highway 61 when she drifted across the center line and into oncoming traffic, said Dalya Qualls, public information officer for the Tennessee Department of Safety. The woman attempted to swerve back into her lane when she struck a Chevrolet pickup truck, Qualls said. [Read more…]

Roane rallies around injured student-athlete

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Information from WYSH Radio

Classmates of a Kingston High School sophomore football player who broke his neck on the first play of last week’s game against Sequoyah showed their support and rallied the community’s support for him on Tuesday.

Seth Haynes shattered the third vertebrae in his neck in the game and underwent surgery at the University of Tennessee Medical Center over the weekend. He could be released from the hospital as early as today and has expressed interest in attending the Yellow Jackets game this Friday night. [Read more…]

Follow-up: New details of fatal Clinton wreck

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Information from WYSH Radio

More information is now available about Friday’s fatal accident on Highway 61 at the on-ramp to I-75 North in Clinton.

The wreck occurred at about 7:06 a.m. Friday, and it killed Christopher Strunk, 32, of Oneida. The Clinton Police Department reported that Strunk was a passenger in a Honda Civic driven by Shawn Wright, 26, of Pioneer.

The accident happened when a car driven by David Kittrell of Mississippi was in the left lane near the on-ramp and Wright’s car pulled into his path while trying to get on to the interstate. Kittrell’s car “T-boned” Wright’s car and both vehicles spun around before coming to rest against a guard rail. Strunk, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was declared dead at the scene by Emergency Medical Services personnel, and Wright suffered injuries that sent him to the University of Tennessee Medical Center by ambulance. [Read more…]

Girl on bike hit by car, now in stable condition at UT, authorities say

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Note: This story was updated at 1:50 p.m.

A nine-year-old girl who was riding a bicycle when she was hit by a car on Highland Avenue on Sunday night is in stable condition at the University of Tennessee Medical Center, authorities said.

The girl was struck at about 5:38 p.m. near Hillside Drive, according to a Monday morning news release from the Oak Ridge Police Department. The car was a 2002 black Lexus driven by Roy Kirk, 67, of South Hollywood Circle in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Former UPF project manager remembered as talented engineer, gifted leader

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Phillip "Phil" W. Schuetz

Phillip “Phil” W. Schuetz

Phil Schuetz, a former project manager for the multi-billion dollar Uranium Processing Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex, died Saturday, officials said.

No formal funeral service will be held, but at Schuetz’s request, a celebration of life is being planned for September, Y-12 officials said.

“I was saddened to hear of the passing of Phil Schuetz,” UPF Federal Project Director John Eschenberg said in a Monday statement. “I was honored to work with him for many years at three different sites. He set the example of professionalism for us all with an incredible work ethic and his infectious spirit. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family.” [Read more…]

Pedestrian struck by vehicle on South Illinois Avenue on Monday

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An Oak Ridge woman was hit by a vehicle driven by an Oak Ridge man on South Illinois Avenue on Monday, authorities said.

Elaine Emerson, 41, was struck near Badger Avenue at 6:12 p.m. Monday by a vehicle driven south by Brandon Luke, 42, the Oak Ridge Police Department said.

Emerson was transported by ambulance to the University of Tennessee Medical Center, where she was listed as being in critical but stable condition, ORPD Lt. Robin Smith said. No charges are expected to be filed against the driver of the vehicle.

Oak Ridge woman dies five days after Highway 62 crash

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A 19-year-old Oak Ridge woman died Saturday morning at a Knoxville hospital five days after she drove through a guard rail on state Highway 62 in Morgan County and hit a creek bed, authorities said.

Jaania X. Dickerson was driving north in a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu four-door sedan at about 12:43 p.m. Monday, June 17, when she went off the right side of the road, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said. She then over-corrected and ran through a guard rail on the left side of the road before landing in the creek bed. [Read more…]