Josh Peterson

Manchester City Schools  and Coffee County School systems will remain closed through April 12, both systems announced Monday. Both systems have already been closed since March 16 amid COVID-19 concerns.

“We will continue to monitor the situation and make adjustments as needed in the future,”  said Manchester Director of Schools Dr. Joey Vaughn.

Thunder Radio will report more on these developments, school closures and schedule changes as that information is available.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee issued a statewide order Sunday, March 22, that limits all Tennessee bars and restaurants to takeout, drive-thru and delivery service only. This order allows for bars and restaurants to sell beer and wine through takeout or deliver if sold with food.

The new order issued by Lee prohibits social gatherings of more than 10 people and orders gyms to close, and limits visits to nursing and retirement homes to “essential care.”

The order goes into effect at midnight Monday and lasts through April 6.

“I urge every Tennessean to take these actions seriously – our physical and economic health depend on this as we work to beat COVID-19,” Lee said in a statement.

This order does not mandate sheltering in place or prohibit anyone from being out of their home, which is what some other states have done – such as California, Nevada and Illinois.

Lee said Friday that he does not plan to mandate business or church closures.

Doctors across the state have been pushing for Lee to go further and order the closure of non-essential businesses. Nearly 2,000 healthcare workers have signed a petition for Lee to issue a shelter-in-place order.

As of Sunday, March 22, there are now 505 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Tennessee – still none in Coffee County.

Franklin County has one confirmed case and Rutherford County has eight confirmed cases, according to Tennessee Department of Health. Davidson County has 167 confirmed cases. 

Dr. Jay Trussler, who practices medicine in Manchester and has a clinic in Grundy County, told Thunder Radio News Sunday that he had a patient test positive at his clinic in Monteagle, and urged Thunder Radio to share with our listeners that COVID-19 is here, and to assume it is everywhere.

Recent events in Tennessee have impacted the employment of many Tennesseans. Because of this, the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) has seen a large increase in the number of unemployment claims. This increase, along with public health concerns, has prompted a change in strategy for the agency.

To meet the current demand for unemployment benefits and address public health concerns, the Department will limit access to American Job Centers and shift resources to triple the number of staff trained to process claim applications.
Starting Monday, March 23, each American Job Center across Tennessee will begin limiting access to facilities and conduct business through phone and internet. This change will allow state-employed staff to switch their focus from workforce development tasks to claims processing.

Nearly 200 employees work inside Tennessee’s 23 comprehensive American Job Centers. This shift in job duties will bring the total number of staff focusing on unemployment to approximately 300, which is roughly one-third of the Department’s employees..

“As a Department, we are shifting resources to align with our greatest need,” said TDLWD Commissioner Jeff McCord. “The changes we are making will go a long way in keeping up with the demand created.”

The Department will extend customer service hours to 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. CT Monday through Friday to serve additional claimants.

The majority of employees processing claims will be able to work from home.
While access is limited at American Job Centers, job search assistance is available online and help is available via telephone. The state’s workforce development website provides a wide variety of virtual assistance tools, everything from tips on writing resumes, interviewing and means to view and apply for over 200,000 job vacancies.
Although we are facing challenging times in our state, the Department remains committed to providing valuable services to Tennesseans.

According to State Representative Rush Bricken, the Tennessee Department of Human Services will be issuing Emergency Pandemic Tennessee Assistance for Needy Families (commonly referred to as TANF), which is an emergency cash assistance program for those impacted by COVID-19.

Emergency Pandemic TANF will utilize existing temporary assistance for needy families (TANF) funds.

To qualify, a family must: have children in the household, be at or below the 85th percentile of the state median income. For example, be below approximately $52,000 a year for a family of 3. And be able to show they are impacted by COVID-19. An example of this would be job loss due to employer closure for COVID-19.

The emergency benefits will be available to families in the following amounts: $500 for a family of 1-2, $750 for a family of 3-4 and $1,000 for a family of five or more.

These benefits will be available for up to two months. This program is not currently operational, but Tennessee Department of Human Services is anticipating program details and requirements will be available within the week.

When the application is ready, you can access it by clicking here. 

Coffee County government offices will continue to be closed to the public through the end of the month, this according to a release from Coffee County Mayor Gary Cordell’s office on Friday. The mayor announced that effective at noon Tuesday, March 17, that all county offices would be closed through the week and a re-evaluation would be conducted Friday, March 20, at which time it was announced that offices will remain closed to foot traffic. However, county workers are still working and available to be reached by telephone. Phone numbers for all county government offices are:

Coffee County Mayors Office 931-723-5100
Coffee County Clerk’s Office 931-723-5106
Coffee County Election Office will be open to pick up and return petitions. 931-723-5103
Coffee County Register of Deeds 931-723-5130
Coffee County Trustee 931-723-5128
Coffee County Probation 931-723-3939
Coffee County Circuit Clerk 931-723-5100
Coffee County Codes 931-723-4841
Coffee County Industrial Board 931-723-5120
Coffee County Property Assessor 931-723-5126

At the request of 12th District Attorney General Michael Taylor, TBI Agents are investigating the circumstances leading to an officer-involved shooting that occurred in Franklin County.

Preliminary information indicates that at approximately 11:15 Friday night, a deputy with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and an officer with the Winchester Police Department were involved in a vehicle pursuit with an individual after he allegedly shot into a residence in Franklin County. During the pursuit, the individual wrecked his vehicle at the intersection of Hwy 130 and Old Estill Springs Road. As officers approached the man, the situation escalated as he tried to retrieve a weapon resulting in the officers firing shots. He was struck and fatally wounded. The deceased individual has been identified as Larry Millraney, age 39.  No officers were injured during the incident.

This remains an active and ongoing investigation, as TBI Special Agents and Forensic Scientists work to gather any and all relevant interviews and evidence. As in any case, TBI’s investigative findings will be shared with the District Attorney General throughout the process for his consideration.

The TBI does not identify the officers involved in these types of incidents and instead refers questions of that nature to their respective agency.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has seen a sharp increase in the amount of requests for firearms backgrounds checks, such volume that it is causing delays.

According to TBI, the increase in background check request, along with limited staff as a result of a TBI employee’s positive diagnosis, and an unplanned technical outage have caused delays.

TBI processed 14,657 transactions between Thursday, March 12 and Monday, March 16. That’s almost double that of a comparable five day period between Feb. 13 and Feb. 17, when 7,901 transactions were processed.