Josh Peterson

Coffee County Mayor Gary Cordell signed a declaration of a State of Emergency in Coffee County Thursday in relation to COVID-19 measures being taken in the county.

This local declaration of emergency authorizes the county to waive certain procedures and formalities otherwise required by law, and also entitles the county to cost reimbursement.
“It is further ordered, that, due to the existence of this situation, the Coffee County Emergency Operations Plan and all appendixes be placed into effect to coordinate and facilitate an effective response to and recovery from this emergency disaster,” the declaration reads.

With this declaration, the following formalities and procedures have been waived :

a. Performance of public work and taking whatever prudent action is necessary to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the community.
b. Entering into contracts;
c. Incurring obligations;
d. Employment of permanent and temporary workers;
e. Utilization of volunteer workers;
f. Rental of equipment;
g. Acquisition and distribution, with or without compensation, of supplies, materials, and facilities; and
h. Appropriation and expenditure of public funds.

This means, in theory, Coffee County Mayor Gary Cordell could enter into contracts, incur obligations on behalf of the county, hire permanent or temporary workers and appropriate funds without the normal procedures of going through certain committees and commissions.

“This simply allows Coffee County to activate our Basic Emergency Operations Plan and its appendices in order to utilize resources not normally available,” explained Coffee County EMA. “This will allow us to quickly aid in the prevention, response, and mitigation of this virus to hopefully lessen the impact to our community. This declaration follows in line with the state and federal declaration as well as other counties that are also doing this. Coffee County has declared an emergency before such as when the tornadoes hit in our county as well as the flooding in 2019. It is standard practice for a county to declare a state of emergency in any type of disaster. This allows for a more streamlined process in the acquisition of Federal funding as it becomes available in order to assist in mitigating disasters, such as COVID-19.”

As of 2 p.m. Thursday, there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Coffee County. There are 154 statewide, the most being Davidson County, where there are 75 cases.

The full resolution signed by Mayor Cordell is below:
WHEREAS, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (CO VID- 19) is a respiratory disease caused by the SARSCo V-2 virus that can result in mild or severe symptoms, including fever, cough, and shortness of breath, and can lead to serious illness or death, particularly in the case of older adults and persons with serious chronic medical conditions;
WHEREAS, CO VID- 1 9 is frequently spread through close contact between persons and respiratory transmission; and
WHEREAS, COVID-19 was first reported in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, and traced back to a patient in November 2019 and has since spread throughout the world; and
WHEREAS, on March 4, 2020, the first case of COVID-19 in the State of Tennessee was identified, and several additional confirmed or presumptively positive cases of COVID-19 have since been identified in Tennessee; and
WHEREAS, the spread and identification of additional cases of COVID-19 in Tennessee is likely to continue, and therefore, taking proactive steps to prevent a substantial risk to public health and safety is paramount; and
WHEREAS, on March 12, 2020, pursuant to the authority granted by Tenn. Code Ann.§ 58-2-107, the Governor of Tennessee, Bill Lee, issued Executive Order No. 14, declaring a state of emergency to facilitate the response to COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, on March 13, 2020, the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, declared a national state of emergency with respect to CO VID-19; and
WHEREAS, the Mutual Aid and Emergency and Disaster Assistance Agreement Act of 2004, Tenn. Code Ann.§§ 58-8-101 et seq., authorizes the mayor to declare a local state of emergency affecting such official’ s jurisdiction by executive order consistent and in accordance with Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 58-21 10(3)(A)(v); and
WHEREAS, Tenn. Code Ann.§§ 58-2-1 IO(3)(A)(v), among other things, authorizes the County, upon the mayor’s declaration of a local state of emergency to waive certain procedures and formalities otherwise required of the County by law; and
WHEREAS, the proclamation of a local state of emergency may entitle the County to cost reimbursement as provided in Tenn. Code Ann. § 58-8-1 1; and
WHEREAS, both federal and state health officials have determined and advised that extraordinary and immediate measures must be taken to respond quickly to COVID-1 9, to prevent community spread, and to alleviate the suffering of people exposed to and those infected with the virus, as well as those that could potentially be infected or affected by COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, it is necessary and appropriate to exercise the authority granted by Tenn. Code Ann 10 and 38-9-103.
NOW THEREFORE, I, Gary Cordell, the Mayor of the Coffee County, in the interest of public safety
and welfare do herein declare pursuant to the statutes of the State of Tennessee and local ordinances/ resolutions of Coffee County that a state of emergency exists.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, that, due to the existence of this situation, the Coffee County Emergency Operations Plan and all appendixes be placed into effect to coordinate and facilitate an effective response to and recovery from this emergency/ disaster situation.
Section 1. All procedures and formalities otherwise required under Coffee County Resolutions or Tennessee law pertaining to the following are hereby waived:
a. Performance of public work and taking whatever prudent action is necessary to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the community.
b. Entering into contracts;
c. Incurring obligations;
d. Employment of permanent and temporary workers;
e. Utilization of volunteer workers;
f. Rental of equipment;
g. Acquisition and distribution, with or without compensation, of supplies, materials, and facilities; and
h. Appropriation and expenditure of public funds.
Section 2. Notice of this Proclamation will be promptly communicated to all members of the Coffee County Commission, Tullahoma City Council and Manchester City Council.
Section 3. This Declaration is valid and effective immediately for a period not to exceed seven days and may be incrementally extended as deemed necessary.
ORDERED this 19—, day of March 2020.

With concerns about COVID-19 continuing to rise, many area businesses are making changes to their operations to better protect staff and customers.

Here are a few changes to area businesses: Farm Bureau in Manchester is offering curbside service. Officials there urge you to call ahead before visiting the office. You can call at 931-728-4637, and most business can be handled over the phone. If you need to visit the office, you can honk your horn at the door and a staff member will be out to assist your without exiting your vehicle.

Meanwhile, Jerry Stephens’ State Farm office, beginning on Friday, will begin serving clients by phone and online. You can contact that office at 931-728-4741. The office will be closed to in-person visits. Payments can be made in the door slot or online.

First National Bank of Manchester is temporarily closing the lobby until further notice. Branches remain open during normal business hours with extra staff working the drive-up windows. However, lobby traffic is limited to appointment only. Contact your local branch office to make an appointment.

Join us at Thunder Radio and the Manchester H&R Block and say congratulations to this week’s student of the week – Kaylex Goines.

Kaylex is in Donna Burdine’s homeroom class. His mom is Melissa Goodman and stepdad is Josh Goodman. In his spare time, Kaylex enjoys playing basketball, soccer, board games and video games. When he grows up he would like to be a cook.

Rosalyn Partin, owner of the Manchester H&R Block, has been inspired to recognize great kids in our community all through hockey season. What does hockey have to do with our local students? Well, HR Block gives each Student of the Week a set of Nashville Predators hockey tickets, a commemorative plaque, as well as a special letter of recognition. Job well done, Kaylex.

Manchester mayor Lonnie Norman released a statement to citizens of Manchester Thursday afternoon. The statement is as follows;

“As Mayor, I want to assure you that we are monitoring the Coronavirus (COVID-19) as it remains everchanging on a daily and hourly basis, and the safety, security, and health of our citizens is my top priority. We have been working closely with other community leaders and state officials to monitor this situation. Over the past week, we have been involved in regular conference calls with these individuals as well as local first responders, hospitals, department of health, and the governor’s office to ensure we are as prepared as we possibly can be.

In an effort to protect all members of our community and workforce, I’m urging all residents of Coffee County to take precautions against the spread of the COVID-19 virus. These voluntary precautions include postponing large public and private gatherings and limiting person to person contact as much as possible. We must all take action to help stop the spread of the virus. We must pull together and help each other by checking on neighbors, extended family, and the elderly that are isolated at home. I urge you to keep supporting our local businesses, they are the backbone of our community. Let’s lookout for one another and remember that we are all in this together.

Earlier in the week, we took action by limiting all person to person contact for the City of Manchester offices until further notice. This includes Codes Department, Finance Department, I.S. Department, and Mayor’s Office, with the exception of the Water Collection and Police Department Lobbies that will remain open. Offices within city hall can be contacted by phone and online to schedule appointments. Essential City services will remain fully operational during this suspension. These departments include Water, Sanitation, and Public Works. The Recreation Complex will be closed, and we will reassess these suspensions weekly. The City of Manchester Police and Fire departments will continue to operate as usual. I have asked our water department to suspend all cut-offs until 4-15-20 to ensure citizens receive water services. We have been in close contact with the Manchester Coffee County Senior Citizens organization to monitor the Meals on Wheels program, while some of their services have been impacted (723-8288). The City of Manchester School System has implemented a plan to provide food for children in our community (728-2316).

We encourage residents to utilize available online services at www.cityofmanchestertn.com to access information, pay bills, or engage in city business when possible. We also encourage everyone to monitor the Tennessee Department of Public Health website tn.gov/health, and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) www.cdc.gov to receive factual information and instructions on this developing situation. For the most up to date information, I urge you to utilize the State of Tennessee site at tn.gov.

Just as we all share in this crisis, we all share the drive to get back to our normal lives as soon as possible. In the meantime, please be safe and take care of yourself and those you love.”

, Coffee County Mayor Gary Cordell signed a declaration of a State of Emergency in Coffee County Thursday in relation to COVID-19 measures being taken in the county.

This local declaration of emergency authorizes the county to waive certain procedures and formalities otherwise required by law, and also entitles the county to cost reimbursement.

“It is further ordered, that, due to the existence of this situation, the Coffee County Emergency Operations Plan and all appendixes be placed into effect to coordinate and facilitate an effective response to and recovery from this emergency disaster,” the declaration reads.

With this declaration, the following formalities and procedures have been waived :
a. Performance of public work and taking whatever prudent action is necessary to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the community.
b. Entering into contracts;
c. Incurring obligations;
d. Employment of permanent and temporary workers;
e. Utilization of volunteer workers;
f. Rental of equipment;
g. Acquisition and distribution, with or without compensation, of supplies, materials, and facilities; and
h. Appropriation and expenditure of public funds.

This means, in theory, Coffee County Mayor Gary Cordell could enter into contracts, incur obligations on behalf of the county, hire permanent or temporary workers and appropriate funds without the normal procedures of going through certain committees and commissions.

“This simply allows Coffee County to activate our Basic Emergency Operations Plan and its appendices in order to utilize resources not normally available,” explained Coffee County EMA. “This will allow us to quickly aid in the prevention, response, and mitigation of this virus to hopefully lessen the impact to our community. This declaration follows in line with the state and federal declaration as well as other counties that are also doing this. Coffee County has declared an emergency before such as when the tornadoes hit in our county as well as the flooding in 2019. It is standard practice for a county to declare a state of emergency in any type of disaster. This allows for a more streamlined process in the acquisition of Federal funding as it becomes available in order to assist in mitigating disasters, such as COVID-19.” 

The full resolution is below:

WHEREAS, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (CO VID- 19) is a respiratory disease caused by the SARSCo V-2 virus that can result in mild or severe symptoms, including fever, cough, and shortness of breath, and can lead to serious illness or death, particularly in the case of older adults and persons with serious chronic medical conditions;
WHEREAS, CO VID- 1 9 is frequently spread through close contact between persons and respiratory transmission; and
WHEREAS, COVID-19 was first reported in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, and traced back to a patient in November 2019 and has since spread throughout the world; and
WHEREAS, on March 4, 2020, the first case of COVID-19 in the State of Tennessee was identified, and several additional confirmed or presumptively positive cases of COVID-19 have since been identified in Tennessee; and
WHEREAS, the spread and identification of additional cases of COVID-19 in Tennessee is likely to continue, and therefore, taking proactive steps to prevent a substantial risk to public health and safety is paramount; and
WHEREAS, on March 12, 2020, pursuant to the authority granted by Tenn. Code Ann.§ 58-2-107, the Governor of Tennessee, Bill Lee, issued Executive Order No. 14, declaring a state of emergency to facilitate the response to COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, on March 13, 2020, the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, declared a national state of emergency with respect to CO VID-19; and
WHEREAS, the Mutual Aid and Emergency and Disaster Assistance Agreement Act of 2004, Tenn. Code Ann.§§ 58-8-101 et seq., authorizes the mayor to declare a local state of emergency affecting such official’ s jurisdiction by executive order consistent and in accordance with Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 58-21 10(3)(A)(v); and
WHEREAS, Tenn. Code Ann.§§ 58-2-1 IO(3)(A)(v), among other things, authorizes the County, upon the mayor’s declaration of a local state of emergency to waive certain procedures and formalities otherwise required of the County by law; and
WHEREAS, the proclamation of a local state of emergency may entitle the County to cost reimbursement as provided in Tenn. Code Ann. § 58-8-1 1; and
WHEREAS, both federal and state health officials have determined and advised that extraordinary and immediate measures must be taken to respond quickly to COVID-1 9, to prevent community spread, and to alleviate the suffering of people exposed to and those infected with the virus, as well as those that could potentially be infected or affected by COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, it is necessary and appropriate to exercise the authority granted by Tenn. Code Ann 10 and 38-9-103.
NOW THEREFORE, I, Gary Cordell, the Mayor of the Coffee County, in the interest of public safety
and welfare do herein declare pursuant to the statutes of the State of Tennessee and local ordinances/ resolutions of Coffee County that a state of emergency exists.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, that, due to the existence of this situation, the Coffee County Emergency Operations Plan and all appendixes be placed into effect to coordinate and facilitate an effective response to and recovery from this emergency/ disaster situation.
Section 1. All procedures and formalities otherwise required under Coffee County Resolutions or Tennessee law pertaining to the following are hereby waived:
a. Performance of public work and taking whatever prudent action is necessary to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the community.
b. Entering into contracts;
c. Incurring obligations;
d. Employment of permanent and temporary workers;
e. Utilization of volunteer workers;
f. Rental of equipment;
g. Acquisition and distribution, with or without compensation, of supplies, materials, and facilities; and
h. Appropriation and expenditure of public funds.
Section 2. Notice of this Proclamation will be promptly communicated to all members of the Coffee County Commission, Tullahoma City Council and Manchester City Council.
Section 3. This Declaration is valid and effective immediately for a period not to exceed seven days and may be incrementally extended as deemed necessary.
ORDERED this 19—, day of March 2020.

Coffee County Mayor
Gary Cordell

Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival organizers announced Wednesday that they are postponing the festival from its scheduled dates in June to September 24-27 due to concerns with COVID-19.

Thunder Radio News first reported this story on its website Wednesday.

This is set to be the 19th annual Bonnaroo festival, which has been held in June since its inception in 2002.
Bonnaroo released a statement saying that the change is “out of an abundance of caution and for the health and safety of all Bonnaroovians, artists, staff and our community.”

According to Bonnaroo officials, all current tickets and onsite accommodations and shuttles purchased through the festival will be contacted directly with updates.

“Please continue to radiate positivity through this unchartered time in our world. Thank you for your continued support and we look forward to seeing you on The Farm this fall.”

Thunder Radio News reached out to Bonnaroo officials to ask about refunds and any potential lineup changes with the date change. Officials were not able to provide information more than the original statement at this time. 

The Tennessee Department of Education is working closely with Governor Bill Lee’s office and legislative leadership to ensure schools and students are not adversely affected due to these school closures. TDOE put forward a proposal, which is House Bill 2818 and Senate Bill 2672, that states due to the March 3 tornadoes in Middle Tennessee and COVID-19 closures, the commissioner of education should do the following:

*waive the spring administration of TNReady and end-of-course assessments. Schools may still voluntarily administer these assessments.

*waive teacher evaluation growth scores based on 2019-20 assessments, including alternative growth scores.

*Waive student final grades being comprised in part by 2019-20 assessments, unless inclusion of assessment scores results in a higher final student grade

*waive school and district accountability based on 2019-20 assessments.

*Waive 180 instructional day requirement

*Waive BEP related attendance requirements to ensure that school districts and employees shall continue to receive full state funding despite any lengthy closures

*Waive the 11th grade postsecondary readiness assessment for the 2019-20 school year.

The full proposal is pictured below.

Unity Medical Center in Manchester implemented a no visitor policy that takes effect at 6 a.m. Thursday, March 19.
The hospital said the move is to reduce spread of respiratory illness and protect staff, patients and our community.

“We apologize if it seems inconvenient, but we thank you for your patience and diligence to keep our community safe.”
There are a few visitor allowances that include:

*Pediatric patients can have 1 designated parent or caregiver

*Outpatient surgery or outpatient testing can have 1 designated caregiver

*Hospice or end of life may have 1 visitor

*Additional exceptions will be made on a case by case basis.

“Although we have not had any positive cases of COVID-19 at this time, we are not allowing visitors into the building for the safety of our patients, colleagues and community. We understand your desire to be with your loved one and know this can be scary. We want to assure you that we are doing everything possible to keep everyone safe and your loved one is receiving the very best care.
“We recommend using phone calls, texting, FaceTime or other video calling to visit with your loved one. Thank you for understanding while we make every effort to limit exposure and the spread of infection.”