Knoxville Police and the Tennessee Highway Patrol conducting sobriety checkpoints today.
KPD will be on Kingston Pike in West Knoxville and the THP will be on East Emory Road and Washington Pike in Knox County, State Route 116 at Little Cove Creek in Campbell County and in Monroe county on State route 322 at state route 72.
Alcohol or drug impairment possibly contributed to over 43 percent of the fatal crashes that happened in Knoxville last year.
A man is charged in a boating accident on Norris Lake that killed a 12-year-old boy.
The Claiborne County Sheriff’s Office says Norman Sturgill is charged with aggravated vehicular among other charges in the July 22nd crash near the Norris Landing Marina which killed Connor Catlett.
Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters has issued a proclamation declaring today (Friday) a day of mourning to remember the life of former sheriff Ronald “Hoss” Seals, who passed away yesterday (Thursday).
Seals served as sheriff for just over 15 years in Sevier County from 2007 to 2022, capping a 49-year career in law enforcement.
As part of the planned day of mourning, the official flag of Sevier County will fly at half-staff until the end of the day, and the 1896 Bell atop the Historic Sevier County Courthouse rang a solemn toll for five minutes at 11 a.m.
An Endangered Young Adult Alert in accordance with the Holly Bobo Act is issued on behalf of the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office for 19 year old Hollynn Snapp.
She was last seen on October 15th in the area of Bell Ridge Dr., in Kingsport.
Anyone with information is asked to call 1-800-TBI-FIND.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) We’re learning more now about the cause of a deadly fire early Wednesday morning in North Knox County.
Officials with the Knox County Sheriff’s Office say 66 year-old Karen Sue Rutledge of Knoxville died in a house fire on Fort Sumter Road.
They say the sheriff’s office and Rural Metro Fire responded to the single-wide home after neighbors called about it around 3:00 a.m. after hearing an explosion.
KCSO reports investigators were initially unable to determine the cause of the fire since the house was so damaged; however, based on witnesses and family statements, they say it is likely the blaze was started because someone was smoking near an oxygen tank.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI / WVLT) Knox County has awarded a new ambulance contract to American Medical Response, also known as AMR.
The move comes weeks after an emergency operations center opened after no AMR ambulances were available.
Our news partner WVLT Thursday reporting that city and county leaders have discussed what needs to be fixed and that the new contract includes a number of changes, one of which addresses hospital wait times for ambulances specifically.
WVLT reached out to Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs who provided a statement on the deal which reads, in part:
“We all know that there have been some significant issues with healthcare and ambulance services – not only here but across the country,” Jacobs said. “Though this new contract and its significant updates won’t immediately fix all the problems, we feel like it will be a big step forward.”
Though the contract has been awarded to AMR, the deal must still go before county commissioners in November for final approval. The new contract is set for five years, with an optional five-year renewal period following, for a total of 10 years.
AMR also released a statement, commending the county for creating a new contract that, according to AMR, will make it easier to serve Knox County.
Knox County ran a fair and focused process and we are thrilled to win the competitive process and be able to continue our long standing service to the citizens here,
The new and much different contract will help address many of the problems plaguing the EMS industry nationwide and we salute the County for taking a different approach.
We will now get to work alongside our other local community first responders and hospital partners across the City and County to align on new EMS programs and innovations under the new proposal and agreement.
This contract will represent a new and exciting time for EMS services in Knox County and we are thrilled to be a part of it. We are excited for all of our current and future first responder employees to be part of this new innovative EMS system for other communities to follow – AMR
Three other companies also threw their hats in the ring for Knox County’s contract, the details of which have not been released. Of those three, Priority scored the second-best in a county review prior to awarding the contract, behind AMR.
Lenoir City, TN (WOKI) A multi-state search ends with the arrests of two people wanted on charges stemming from a shooting and robbery at the Lenoir City Walmart in June.
Lenoir City Police Chief Don White thanked the agencies involved during a press conference Thursday.
“The cooperation that went into this case and to be able to get them arrested and brought back to face these charges is just amazing,” White said.
Chief White said Fredricka Johnson and Joshua Raby were arrested in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. They are currently being held in the Loudon County Jail on a $100,000 bond, and each has been charged with one count of aggravated robbery.
The robbery and shooting happened at the Walmart on Highway 321 on June 20. No injuries occurred in relation to that incident.
A Knox County School is on soft lockdown while Knoxville Police investigate a possible threat.
Northwest Middle school was placed on hard lockdown this (Thursday) morning as a precaution but that lockdown transitioned to a soft lockdown not long after. Officials say there is no active emergency or verified threats at Northwest Middle at this time and officers are investigating where the threat came from.
Update (10:52 a.m. 10/26/23)
I 75 South has re-opened
OriginaI: -75 South is closed at MM 60 in Monroe County due to an overturned tractor-trailer. That’s near the Sweetwater exit.
The Tennessee Department of Transportation says this is a Haz-Mat situation. Traffic is being diverted in the area.
UPDATE (10:33 a.m. 10/26/23) : All lanes of Interstate 40 East have re-opened at Mile Marker 411 but some congestion is still being reported in the area.
Original: Also, TDOT is reporting one lane of Interstate 40 East in Jefferson has reopened at mile marker 411, past the Dollywood exit.
The left two lanes and shoulder are still closed due to an earlier Multi-Vehicle Crash.
Traffic is reportedly backing up over 4 miles. Please use caution in the area.
Updated story: The Knox County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a fatal crash in North Knox County and have identified the victim.
Officers called to West Emory Road near Holgate Lane yesterday afternoon and say 23 year-old Daniel Bell died as a result of the crash. No further details have been released.
Original story: The Knox County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a fatal crash in North Knox County.
Officers called to West Emory Road near Holgate Lane yesterday afternoon. No details of the crash have been released.
