Category: News

Governor Bill Lee issues executive order limiting group sizes at social gatherings

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee issued executive order 70 Sunday night – an order that stops short of instituting a statewide mask mandate in Tennessee, but limits indoor public gatherings.

The order asks for everyone to work at home when possible and limit gatherings. Below are notes regarding the order, including changes to TSSAA events. The full order is also below.

Governor Lee’s executive order calls for the following:

*Tennesseans should work from home where possible. This is not a mandate, but urges employers and businesses to take steps to the “greatest extend practicable to equip, encourage, allow or require employees to work remotely or via telework from home.”

* Social gathering limitations. Lee’s order calls for Tennesseans to maintain at least six feet of separation from persons outside their household and “shall not in any event be in a group of 10 or more persons in an indoor public place for the purposes of social gatherings, activities or events; provided that this limitation does not necessarily prohibit 10 or more total persons from gathering in a single place or venue for an activity or event if they are in separate, otherwise permissible smaller groups that substantially maintain six feet or more of separation from other persons or separate groups.”

The social distancing guidelines do not apply to worship services, weddings or funerals because these are not considered social gatherings.

However, places of worship are “strongly encouraged to follow the guidance for gathering together in houses for worship” issued by the Governor’s office of faith-based and community initiatives regarding in-person services that can be conducted safely. It is encouraged that large public celebration of weddings and funerals be postponed or attended only by close  family.

 *Spectator sports and athletic events. Local education agencies and schools shall have the authority to permit school-sponsored sporting events and activities, provided that all such activities, including practices and games or competition, must be conducted in a manner consistent with COVID-19 related guidance and rules adopted by the Tennessee Secondary Schools Athletic Association.

There is this caveat to school sponsored events: “schools, organizers and facilities shall not permit spectators to attend practices, games or competition; provided, that game, school and facility administrators, athletic officials, coaching and team personnel, parents, guardians or other immediate household members of athletes practicing or competing at the venue on that date, media and athletic scouting personnel attending the event in their professional capacity, and first responders may be present within the facility, but must to the greatest extend practicable comply with applicable health protocols, including maintaining at least 6 feet of separation from persons outside their household.”

The TSSAA is expected to release additional guidance for member schools Monday.

The full order is below.

Coffee County Sheriff’s Dept. to take non-emergency reports over the phone

Coffee County Sheriff’s Department will now take non-emergency reports over the phone.

The department made the decision due to the recent increase of COVID-19 cases within Coffee County.

Any reports that require the presence of a deputy or investigator will be responded to normally.

To contact the Coffee County non-emergency dispatch, call 931-728-9555.

Some Coffee Co. government offices alter operations beginning Monday

Due to the rising numbers in COVID-19 cases in Coffee County, most Coffee County Government buildings will be closing their offices to the public beginning Monday, Dec. 21.

This will include most all offices at Coffee County Administrative Plaza, The Public Libraries, and all other county buildings unless otherwise listed in this release. The exceptions to this will be Coffee County Sheriff’s Department and all Convenience centers within the County. They will remain open and operational utilizing normal business hours.

Also, the Coffee County Trustee’s office lobby will remain open Dec. 21-23 and Dec. 29-31 for residents to pay property taxes.

All employees will still be working and will be available by appointment. If you have business with the following offices, we ask that you please call ahead and schedule an appointment:
Coffee County Mayor’s Office 931-723-5100
Coffee County Clerk’s Office 931-723-5106

“Those who have business with Coffee County Clerk can also utilize the drive-up window located on the East side of the building.

Coffee County Election Office (Closed)
Coffee County Register of Deeds 931-723-5130 (Office has walk up window)
Coffee County Trustee will remain open. 931-723-5128
Coffee County Probation 931-723-3939
Coffee County Circuit Clerk 931-723-5110 (Someone will be in the lobby for payments & filings)
Coffee County Codes 931-723-4841
Coffee County Industrial Board 931-723-5120
Coffee County Property Assessor 931-723-5126
Coffee County Chancery Court 931-723-5132 (Someone will be in the lobby for payments & filings)
Coffee County Youth Services 931-723-5108

Following similar precautions being taken across the state, these precautionary measures are being taken in order to limit potential exposure to COVID-19. All emergency services will still operate in case of Emergency. County Employees and most services will continue to be available by phone and many services are available online.

The health and safety of our residents, visitors, and employees is of the highest importance at this time. Coffee County will continue to monitor all updates from the CDC and state health officials and will adjust our response plans and operations based on their advice. The CDC and State of Tennessee health officials recommend social distancing, which is a term for taking precautions to reduce your contact with other individuals. Coffee County Will re-evaluate on Monday 1/4/2021 by 4pm and apprise the public as to further closings that may be warranted.

TDH to provided dashboard for vaccine updates

The Tennessee Department of Health will provide data on COVID-19 vaccines administered in the state via a new dashboard to be provided online at www.tn.gov/health/cedep/ncov/covid-19-vaccine-information.html. This dashboard launched Dec. 18 and will be updated each Tuesday and Friday.

Tennessee’s COVID-19 Vaccination Reporting dashboard will include data on total vaccinations reported, vaccinations reported in the last day and within the last week. The dashboard will also display the percentage of each county’s population that has been vaccinated. The first reports shared via this dashboard will reflect Tennesseans who have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Future versions will also provide data on Tennesseans who have been fully vaccinated with both their first and second doses of COVID-19 vaccine.

“We are eager to offer this tool to track our progress in implementing Tennessee’s COVID-19 Vaccination Plan and making this important preventive measure available to Tennesseans in every county of our state,” said Tennessee Health Commissioner Lisa Piercey, MD, MBA, FAAP.

TDH continues to provide daily COVID-19 data reports and will publish these reports by 5 p.m. Central time daily effective on Friday, Dec. 18.

Tennessee’s COVID-19 Vaccination Plan was last updated Dec. 2 and will be modified as more is learned about the vaccines Tennessee will receive. The plan is available online at www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/health/documents/cedep/novel-coronavirus/COVID-19_Vaccination_Plan.pdf.

Tennessee’s local health departments continue to offer COVID-19 testing five days a week at no charge to those wishing to be tested. TDH testing sites across the state will employ self-testing kits for adults three days a week beginning December 21, to allow staff members to transition to vaccination of frontline health care providers and first responders. Find testing hours and contact information for TDH health department testing sites online at https://covid19.tn.gov/testing-sites/.

The mission of the Tennessee Department of Health is to protect, promote and improve the health and prosperity of people in Tennessee. Learn more about TDH services and programs at www.tn.gov/health.

COVID-19 update: Sunday, Dec. 20

Coffee County now has 808 active cases of COVID-19 virus according to data provided by Tennessee Department of Health on Sunday.

There have now been 56 virus-related deaths in Coffee County.

There are currently 2,893 people hospitalized with the virus across the state. Across the state, 16% of floor beds remain available, while 10 percent of ICU beds are available. There are 72% of adult ventilators available.

Coffee Middle School students make donation to Toys for Tots

Students at Coffee County Middle School were able to donate a large quantity of toys to less fortunate children for the holiday season.

Students gathered toys and presented them to the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department last week. The department coordinated delivery of the toys to the area Toys for Tots program.

Grundy County authorities respond to shooting at I-24 exit 127

Grundy County Sheriff’s Department investigators have responded to a shooting just outside of Coffee County.

According to Grundy County Sheriff’s Department, they are working a shooting at exit 127 on Interstate-24 in Pelham.

Authorities clarified that this is not an active shooter situation.

“The victim is part of a group traveling from Chicago to Atlanta,” GCSO said in a post.

Thunder Radio will post more information as it is available.

County government offices closing to in-person traffic until after New Year; trustee office to remain open.

Due to the rising numbers in COVID-19 cases in Coffee County, Coffee County Government buildings will be closing their offices to the public beginning Monday, Dec. 21.

This will include most all offices at Coffee County Administrative Plaza, The Public Libraries, and all other county buildings unless otherwise listed in this release. The exceptions to this will be Coffee County Sheriff’s Department and all Convenience centers within the County. They will remain open and operational utilizing normal business hours. Also, the Coffee County Trustee’s office lobby will remain open Dec. 21-23 and Dec. 29-31 for residents to pay property taxes.

All employees will still be working and will be available by appointment. If you have business with the following offices, we ask that you please call ahead and schedule an appointment:

Coffee County Mayor’s Office 931-723-5100

Coffee County Clerk’s Office 931-723-5106

​“Those who have business with Coffee County Clerk can also utilize the drive-up window located on the East side of the building.

Coffee County Election Office (Closed)

Coffee County Register of Deeds 931-723-5130 (Office has walk up window)

Coffee County Trustee will remain open. 931-723-5128

Coffee County Probation 931-723-3939

Coffee County Circuit Clerk 931-723-5110 (Someone will be in the lobby for payments & filings)

Coffee County Codes 931-723-4841

Coffee County Industrial Board 931-723-5120

Coffee County Property Assessor 931-723-5126

Coffee County Chancery Court 931-723-5132 (Someone will be in the lobby for payments & filings)

Coffee County Youth Services 931-723-5108

Following similar precautions being taken across the state, these precautionary measures are being taken in order to limit potential exposure to COVID-19. All emergency services will still operate in case of Emergency. County Employees and most services will continue to be available by phone and many services are available online.

The health and safety of our residents, visitors, and employees is of the highest importance at this time. Coffee County will continue to monitor all updates from the CDC and state health officials and will adjust our response plans and operations based on their advice. The CDC and State of Tennessee health officials recommend social distancing, which is a term for taking precautions to reduce your contact with other individuals.Coffee County Will re-evalu

ate on Monday 1/4/2021 by 4pm and apprise the public as to further closings that may be warranted.

Authorities looking for men who scammed elderly female in Grundy County

Sheriff’s investigators in Grundy County are working a case involving two men who allegedly scammed a senior citizen.

This was not a telephone or internet scam – this was done in person.

According to the Grundy County Sheriff’s Department, two men in a white truck approached a senior citizen about doing linoleum work. Once these men got into the house, one man had a conversation with the lady while the other man went through the house taking items.

These men are described as follows: the first man is described as between 6’0” and 6’3”, 150 pounds, wearing a green coat and jeans. The second individual is described as 5’11” and 185 pounds, wearing a ball cap, faded pink plaid shirt, blue jeans and black boots.

Anyone with information about these two individuals is encouraged to contact Grundy County Sheriff’s Department captain Larry Sims at 931-692-3466 ext. 5.

Moderna COVID-19 vaccine arriving in Tennessee; supplies expected to arrive at all TN health departments next week

The Tennessee Department of Health Thursday announced the state expects to receive its first shipment of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine on or around Dec. 21.

Tennessee expects to receive an initial allocation of a total of 115,000 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine over the next two weeks, following Emergency Use Authorization issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and recommendations released by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine should be shipped for delivery Dec. 21 to all 95 Tennessee county health departments. Smaller hospitals that are not receiving the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine are expected to receive Moderna vaccine the week of Dec. 28.

Unity Medical Center in Manchester did not receive Pfizer vaccine. Officials at Unity told Thunder Radio News that they are working to confirm if they will indeed receive Moderna vaccine during this first shipment. 

The FDA announced Wednesday that vials of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, which are labeled as containing five doses, may include enough of the vaccine to provide six or possibly seven doses. FDA has announced these additional doses may be used, meaning Tennessee may have as many as 11,000 more doses of this vaccine to provide than originally expected.

“We are excited to receive these additional vaccines and see our COVID-19 vaccination activities underway,” said Tennessee Health Commissioner Lisa Piercey, MD, MBA, FAAP. “Tennessee county health department staff members will administer the Moderna vaccine to first responders, home health care providers and student health care providers in partnership with these organizations and their local community emergency management agencies.”

Initial supplies of the COVID-19 vaccines are limited. The first allocations of both the Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines in Tennessee will be used to provide first vaccine doses to individuals qualifying for Phase 1a1, as detailed in the COVID-19 Vaccination Plan for Tennessee. It is important to note these Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are not interchangeable; each patient must receive two doses of the same vaccine to be protected against COVID-19. Those who choose to receive the vaccine will receive a card with the date of their first dose, the name/manufacturer of the vaccine received and the date on which they should receive their second dose.

“Tennessee’s plan for allocation of COVID-19 vaccine has been thoughtfully developed with a focus on how best to serve our diverse populations and communities, and to ensure distribution of vaccination sites across all 95 counties, especially in rural areas and those with high concentrations of people in vulnerable populations,” Piercey said.

Tennessee’s COVID-19 vaccination plan was last updated Dec. 2 and will be modified as more is learned about the vaccines Tennessee will receive.

Tennessee’s local health departments continue to offer COVID-19 testing five days a week at no charge to those wishing to be tested. TDH testing sites across the state will employ self-testing kits for adults three days a week beginning Dec. 21, to allow staff members to transition to vaccination of frontline health care providers and first responders. Find testing hours and contact information for TDH health department testing sites online at https://covid19.tn.gov/testing-sites/.