Oak Ridge Today

Frozen sprinkler pipes burst, flood buildings across Oak Ridge

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Oak Ridge Fire Department at Heritage Fellowship

The Oak Ridge Fire Department responds to a report of a frozen sprinkler system that burst at Heritage Fellowship on Tuesday afternoon.

Frozen sprinkler pipes burst and flooded buildings across Oak Ridge on Tuesday as a frigid arctic air mass lingered over parts of the central and eastern United States.

Oak Ridge firefighters said it’s likely there will be more calls on Wednesday as temperatures rise and frozen pipes thaw.

Late Tuesday afternoon, Oak Ridge Fire Department Chief Darryl Kerley provided a list of buildings where frozen sprinkler systems had burst. They included St. Mary’s School, the back side of the Staples building, a building at the Pine Ridge office complex, Centennial Village Apartments, a U.S. Department of Energy building on Laboratory Road, UBS Financial on East Tennessee Avenue, Weatherford Mortuary, Courtyards at Briarcliff, and Heritage Fellowship on North Illinois Avenue. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Schools opening delayed to Wednesday, press conference rescheduled

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Dangerously Cold Wind Chills

Students at Oak Ridge Schools will return to class on Wednesday, rather than Tuesday, and the Keys to College press conference that had been scheduled for Monday afternoon has been rescheduled due to the weather. And the Anderson County Schools Central Office is closed Monday, officials said.

As reported earlier, Roane County Schools are closed Monday.

The Oak Ridge Schools’ press conference on the Keys to College and Career Readiness program has been rescheduled to 2 p.m. Tuesday in the Oak Ridge High School lobby. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Christmas Parade still on—rain or shine

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Oak Ridge Christmas Parade

The Oak Ridge Christmas Parade is at 6 p.m. Saturday. (Photo by D. Ray Smith)

The Oak Ridge Christmas Parade will take place rain or shine Saturday evening, officials said.

The parade is organized by the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce, and it starts at 6 p.m. Saturday.

“According to the hour-by-hour forecast, the rain should be out of here before the parade takes place—keep your fingers crossed!” the chamber said.

This year’s theme is “Inside Santa’s Workshop,” and the parade promises to provide spectators with plenty of music, lights, and beautiful floats, a press release said. [Read more…]

Relay for Life moved indoors tonight, ends at midnight due to forecast

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Relay for Life will be held indoors at the Oak Ridge High School tonight due to the risk of bad weather, the American Cancer Society said.

“We will be in the corridor and the B Gym,” representative Kayla Shelby said in a statement Thursday. She said participants should enter through the doors they would use to go to the arena, and the event will be modified, ending at midnight.

[Read more…]

Anderson, Clinton, Roane schools closed Friday

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Anderson County, Clinton, and Roane County have announced that their schools will be closed Friday due to the weather.

Anderson County said its central office staff will follow established procedures for bad weather, and Roane County Schools said its central office will be closed because of the weather conditions.

[Read more…]