Louisville, TN (WOKI) A man whose houseboat caught fire last (Monday) night on Fort Loudon Lake is crediting his dog for alerting him to the blaze.
Blount County fire crews responded to the Ish Creek Boat Ramp in the Louisville area where three boats caught fire.
Officials with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency say that the Blount County Fire Protection District was able to deploy a fire boat to contain the fire and rescue the owner of the boats, Jim Baxter.
According to officials, one of the boats was a houseboat and Baxter’s primary residence.
It’s not yet clear what caused the fire. No injuries were reported.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) The deadline to register for FEMA assistance following Helene’s destruction across East Tennessee is quickly approaching.
Flood survivors in Carter, Cocke, Greene, Hamblen, Hawkins, Johnson, Unicoi, and Washington counties have until Tuesday, January 7 to apply for FEMA disaster assistance.
The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency said that through FEMA’s Individual and Households Program, applicants may be eligible for the following:
Home repair or replacement
Rental assistance
Personal property
Vehicle repair or replacement
Childcare
Medical and dental help
Moving and storage expenses
Privately owned roads, bridges, or docks
Accessibility needs
Funeral costs
Those looking to apply may do so online, on the FEMA app, by phone at 1-800-621-3362 between 7 a.m. and midnight and in-person at a Disaster Recovery Center (DRC).
Anyone who applied for assistance should get an eligibility letter from FEMA by physical mail or email, and it will explain the application status and how to respond. It will also have an optional appeal form.
Officials said to make sure you read the letter carefully.
Those who are asked to submit more information or supporting documentation may need to provide proof of insurance coverage, identity, occupancy, ownership, that the damaged property was the applicant’s main residence when the hurricane hit, and/or a settlement of insurance claims or denial letter from the insurance company.
Appeals need to be submitted within 60 days of the date posted on the decision letter.
FEMA has approved more than $21.6 million in housing and other types of assistance for more than 13,900 households in Tennessee.
Flood survivors have until Tuesday, Jan. 7 to apply for FEMA disaster assistance. (Courtesy: DHS.gov)
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) A pastor with the Knoxville Diocese has been placed on administrative leave after being accused of “boundary violations.”
Father Joseph Reed is a Knoxville native and the pastor for St. John Neumann Catholic Church and School.
Though the specifics of the allegations against Reed have not been outlined, a letter sent out by the Diocese Friday to parishioners says Reed has been placed on leave as part of the diocese’s Safe Environment Policy.
Diocesan officials add that the complaints have been forwarded to the state which has prompted an investigation, after which the diocese itself is planning to conduct its own internal review.
Both the Knox County Sheriff’s Office and The Tennessee Department of Child Services have confirmed their respective agencies are also investigating.
The Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is the seat of the Catholic Diocese of Knoxville. (Courtesy: WVLT)
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) UPDATE 12/16: Knoxville Police Department officials identify the man killed Friday night in a fiery, single-car crash near downtown.
Officers were called around 10:15 p.m. to the exit ramp to Hall of Fame Drive from I-40 West and found a car on fire that had run off the road and into a wooded area.
They found 38-year-old David Boatwright of Knoxville trapped inside and began trying to pull him out by breaking windows and using fire extinguishers, but the fire quickly overtook the vehicle; he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Officials say they believe speed to be a factor in the crash.
ORIGINAL STORY: A man was killed in a single-car crash that happened late Friday night near Hall of Fame Drive.
At around 10:15 p.m. on Friday, December 13, 2024, Knoxville Police Department officers responded to to the area of the exit ramp to Hall of Fame Drive from I-40 West, where a car had run off the road and into a wooded area.
Multiple officers arrived on scene, where the crashed car had caught on fire with the driver trapped inside. Responding officers attempted to rescue the driver from the car, busting out the windows of the car in an effort to extract the victim while using fire extinguishers to push back the flames. However, fire quickly overtook the vehicle. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene.
KPD crash reconstruction investigators and crime scene technicians responded to the scene in addition to Medical Examiner’s Office personnel.
The victim of the crash has not yet been positively identified and was transported to the Regional Forensic Center for further examination.
The investigation into the crash remains ongoing at this time.
Jefferson City, TN (WOKI) UPDATE 12/16: The woman at the center of a missing person alert out of Jefferson County has been found safe.
Officials with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office announcing Monday afternoon that 36-year-old Amber Nancy Cox had been located after being reported missing Sunday afternoon.
Concern had been raised as Cox is prone to seizures and was reported to have been without her medication.
ORIGINAL STORY: The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office is asking for help to find a missing woman.
Deputies responded to a home on Murph Road yesterday (Sunday) afternoon for a missing person call centered on 36-year-old Amber Nancy Cox.
She was last seen around 2 p.m. going to her mailbox. She was seen wearing a gray hoodie with a skull on it and blue jeans.
Also, officials say Cox has a scar on her chest and lower throat and wears glasses.
If you have any information, you are being asked to call JCSO at 865-471-6000 ext. 1109.
On a night in which both teams were riddled with foul trouble, scoring was at a premium and Tennessee—in its first-ever non-conference true road game as the top-ranked team in America—was facing its toughest road environment of the season thus far, senior guard Jordan Gainey stared adversity in the face and beat the buzzer to give the Vols a 66-64 victory Saturday night at Illinois.
“We work on that play just about every day in practice and late-game situations, so we were all prepared for the moment,” Gainey said. “My teammates ran it perfectly and executed it.”
When senior guard Zakai Zeigler, the SEC’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, was whistled for his fourth personal foul with 18:13 remaining in the game, it was Gainey who shouldered the load of running the point for nearly the entire second half.
With Tennessee’s leading scorer this season, fifth-year guard Chaz Lanier, fouled out with 3:42 left in the contest and Zeigler picked up his fifth foul on the Vols’ final defensive possession, Tennessee needed one final push. The back-and-forth affair featured a 14th tie after Illinois’ Kasparas Jakučionis split a pair of free throws to even the score at 64-all with 5.7 seconds remaining.
Gainey inbounded the ball to commence what would be the game’s final trip down the floor, quickly received the ball back from Igor Miličić Jr. and crossed the midcourt line with 3.4 seconds left on the ticker. He snuck past Jakučionis, transitioned the ball to his right hand and scooped it softly off the glass from the left block, watching it roll around the iron and drop in as the buzzer sounded.
“Really, I saw the ball bounce and I just gave us a rep so everyone could get set up,” Gainey said. “Then, as soon as Igor popped open and he gave it back, I just saw my defender keep backing up and he just kept backing up. He was just dead in the water and it was too late for them to send a double because there was probably two seconds left. I was already at the rim at that point. We executed it perfectly.”
Logging 34:18 of action, Gainey’s performance included zero turnovers on the night. As a team, Tennessee’s zero turnovers in the second half marked its third time with zero in a frame in head coach Rick Barnes‘ 10-year tenure, including the first time in a true road outing.
Barnes, who considers Gainey to be Tennessee’s “sixth starter” in a sense, praised his focus down the stretch.
“We said, ‘hey, man, we’ve got to come through,'” Barnes said. “‘You’ve got to do it,’ and he worked really hard. They guard. It was a physical game. We knew coming in, they’re going to hit us with a lot of ball screens. Just screen, screen, screen, but that was a high-level game. But I’m proud of Jordan, because everything he gets, he’s worked for it. He’s earned it, and I’m just so glad he’s with us.”
Even aside of his game-winning bucket, Gainey had an excellent outing in a hostile environment. With a final stat line of 23 points, a pair of assists, two rebounds, a 6-for-14 ledger from the field, 3-of-6 from beyond the arc and an 8-of-9 tally from the free-throw stripe, the guard remained level-headed, despite the noted circumstances.
While speaking with the media postgame, Gainey gave credit to Zeigler for bettering his game in practice each day.
“Going against Zakai every single day causes me to get better each and every time. He works and we just compete each day. We’ve been competing since last April. We’re in the gym all the time and he’s giving me tips, giving me pointers about what I have to do to keep him off me, to keep pesky defenders off me. To be able to go against him every day has taught me how to keep the ball and not turn it over. And Coach Barnes is on us every single day about keeping the ball and not turning it over.”
Gainey was sent through the fire and he emerged stronger. He embraces opportunities to lead and will use Saturday’s experience to his advantage as the undefeated Vols round out non-conference action.
An investigation is underway after a three-story structure fire in Roane County.
The Roane County Office of Emergency Services & Homeland Security says several fire departments were called to the structure in the 2200 block of Ruritan Road Saturday afternoon. They found the abandoned building engulfed which has been ruled a total loss.
An employee at a Dollar General in Sweetwater is charged after he tells authorities he set a fire inside the store.
Sweetwater Police Officers went to the Dollar General store in the 800 block of North Main Street on Saturday after a fire alarm was activated.
SPD says there was smoke coming from the building, and firefighters from several departments responded.
During the investigation, it was determined the fire was intentionally set, and Andrew Helton, an employee at the Dollar General, was identified as the suspect.
Helton was arrested and charged with two counts of aggravated arson.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The seventh-ranked Vols are in full preparation mode ahead of their College Football Playoff first-round matchup with No. 6 Ohio State, set for this Saturday, Dec. 21 at 8 p.m. ET in Columbus, Ohio.
As the Vols gear up for their postseason appearance, veteran offensive linemen Cooper Mays and Andrej Karic spoke with the media about the significance of playing meaningful football in December and the growth of the offensive line over the course of the season.
“For me, it means that we’ve done our job and brought this program back to where it needs to be,” Mays said. “We’re right here in the thick of things, going into December and the playoff, and that’s really all you can ask for at this point in the season.”
Karic echoed Mays’ sentiment and reflected on the progress made by the offensive line.
“I do feel like we all have grown confident,” Karic said. “We’ve had some first-year players, and guys like me coming back from injury a little bit earlier in the season. But once you get through the flow of things, I think we’ve all gotten a lot better.”
On being named a Rimington Trophy finalist… “I was super happy. Just kind of getting a little bit of respect for what I have done this year, and probably what I have put together for the last few years. I’m just happy people are taking notice of it, like anybody would be.”
On what it means to him to play meaningful football in December for Tennessee… “To me it means that we have done our job, and we have this place back to where it needs to be and where it’s supposed to be. We are right here in the thick of things going into December and going into the playoff, and that’s kind of all you can ask for at this point in the season.”
On his perspective of the journey this program has taken during the Josh Heupel era… “It’s hard to really encapsulate everything that’s gone on over these last few years. I wasn’t a guy that was recruited (by Coach Heupel). I got a different path into playing for these guys, but staying here and seeing how everything has unfolded, how this staff treats their players and handles their players. It plays into the on-field side of it too. Really remarkable what’s been going on over here in the last few years.”
On what makes Cooper Mays an elite center… “I would say that I have a different kind of view because I play next to him. We’re always out there working together. He’s making me right, and in some ways I can make him right. Just seeing how he navigates, carries himself and pushes the team. He leads our tempo. He does a great job making ID’s (identifications). Whenever we are in our combinations, I can always trust that he’s going to do his job and it will make us successful in the end.”
On how much better the offensive line as gotten as the year has gone… “I think as the year goes on, we get better. Just seeing defenses and how they want to play us, just seeing what we’re going to see, and kind of be able to react faster when you know what to expect. When you go out there and play a little timid at the beginning of the year and you’re trying to figure it out, once you feel it out and you get through it, it lets you play a lot faster, which in result will let you play a lot better. I do feel like we all have grown confident. We’ve had some first year players and guys like me coming back from injury a little bit earlier in the season. But, once you get through the flow of things, I think we’ve all gotten a lot better.”
On his decision to come play at Tennessee… “I think it was a great move. I don’t regret anything and I’m blessed to be here and in the position that I’m in today. When you hit the portal, you never know where you’re going to end up, but just to end up at a place like Tennessee is such a blessing. I don’t take that for granted and I’m very happy with my choice.”
