Category: News

Join us at Thunder Radio and the Manchester H&R Block and say congratulations to our student of the week – Mallory Pack.

Mallory is a fifth grade student at New Union Elementary School and is the daughter of Jason and Malaysha Pack. She is in Ms. Tori Taylor’s class. In her spare time she enjoys playing sports.

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.

Coffee County School System released a new statement on Thursday, addressing parent concerns regarding the Coronavirus. The statement is below:

“Coffee County Schools is working with the Department of Health to monitor the status of the coronavirus in Coffee County. We anticipate remaining in session and running a normal schedule. Should our status change, we will alert parents via local media, social media, and NotifyMe. We are relying on the Department of Health and the Tennessee Department of Education for guidance through this process. If you desire further information on the status of public schools in Tennessee going forward, please contact the Tennessee Department of Education at 615-741-5158.”

A quick storm blew through the area at approximately 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, dropping heavy rain and a lightning bolt that apparently struck the steeple area on top of the Coffee County Courthouse in downtown Manchester.

According to Manchester Fire Department chief George Chambers, crews responded to the area to find the middle post facing the north side of the square had apparently been struck by lightning. Fire and Rescue crews checked the building for water leaks, electrical issues and any interior damage – none was found. Chambers reported most damage appeared to be on the outside of the building. Chambers reported that a vehicle parked near the building may have received minor damage.

Coffee County Mayor Gary Cordell told Thunder Radio News Wednesday that the Coffee County maintenance department would be checking into the damage.

(Photos provided)

The driver of a Nissan Maxima was pronounced dead on the scene of a Wednesday afternoon accident on State Route 55 near Bowling Alley Rd.

According to officials, at approximately 4:14 p.m. Wednesday, Manchester Fire and Rescue, Manchester Police Department, Coffee County Sheriff’s Department, Coffee County EMS and Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) responded to a motor vehicle accident involving a Nissan Maxima and a TDOT dump truck.

The driver of the Maxima has been identified by THP as Brittany Burnette, age 28, of Manchester. She was pronounced dead on the scene. 

According to a preliminary accident report released by THP, the dump truck was using a cut through on State Highway 55 and entered traffic to travel eastbound on Highway 55 in lane two. At this time, the Maxima, operated by Burnette, was attempting to pass a vehicle  and moved into lane two and collided with the dump truck from behind. According to the THP report, Burette was “on a cell phone” when her vehicle struck the dump truck. She was not wearing her seat belt, according to the THP report. 

The driver of the dump truck, Johnny Caldwell,  was transported to Unity Medical Center for treatment. Manchester Police shut down traffic on Highway 55 Eastbound and detoured traffic onto the Old Tullahoma Highway for a significant period of time.

You can complete your 2020 Census online starting Thursday, March 12.

Simply click here to get started. You will be prompted to enter your unique Census code that will come to you in the mail. However, if you have not yet received your Census mail with your unique code, you can click the area that says “If you do not have an ID, click here.” At this point, you will be directed to fill out the Census by simply using your accurate street address as of April 1, 2020.

This is the first United States Census that is allowing for online self-response.

“You will receive a postcard invitation … a very basic general letter,” explained Tia Zanghi, relationship specialist with the US Census. “It has a unique code. You type that into the website and that’s how you can complete online. But you do not have to have that unique code. You can actually do it with just your address.

“We are hoping the more people self-respond online, the more accurate it will be.”

The website opens for response on March 12, and will close to responses on July 31. Census enumerators, commonly called “door knockers,” will begin going home to home on April 27th. Enumerators will not visit you at your home if you have already self responded online, over the phone or through the mail.

For anyone who does not respond online, they can call a phone number on their Census mail (which should be in mailboxes between March 12-20) to complete their Census, or send in the paper questionnaire, which will arrive later in March or early April for those who have not responded online or over the phone. The Census is nine questions.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, about $675 billion in federal money will be distributed based on the census data compiled, meaning ensuring a complete count in Coffee County is a top priority for local officials. One separate study shows that for every person that goes uncounted in the Census, Coffee County will miss out on about $11,000 in federal money allocation over the next 10 years.

“This is a very important Census for Coffee County,” said Coffee County Mayor Gary Cordell. “It is of utmost important that everyone is accounted for. This data and these results will have a direct impact in our community for the next 10 years.”

Unity Medical Center is continuing to follow CDC guidelines to better protect our patients, staff and visitors. Over the past several weeks, hospital leaders have been taking proactive steps in preparation for the potential spread of COVID-19 including regular communications with local and state public health officials, monitoring and conserving the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and reinforcing effective environmental cleaning policies to support infection control.

In addition to preparedness processes already in place, Unity Medical Center will be implementing new screening protocols at all hospital entrances as a proactive measure to prevent the spread of respiratory illnesses.

The safety of our patients, visitors and staff is top priority. This new protocol is in response to evidence-based CDC guidelines to help prevent further spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses. We feel these measures are appropriate to keep our patients, visitors and community safe.

Patients and visitors will be directed to use either the Emergency Room entrance or the main entrance of the hospital where they will be screened for signs of illness before being admitted to patient care areas. Screening personnel will ask questions about recent travel, fever, and any respiratory symptoms. If a patient has symptoms of illness, they will be asked to wear a “cover your cough” mask and then admitted to the patient care area for further assistance.

Unity Medical Center will also continue our visitation policy that is used during respiratory illness season. If a visitor has any respiratory symptoms or a fever, or is age 16 or under, we ask that they postpone their visit.

For more information, please contact Unity Medical Center at 931-728-6354. Updates will be posted to the Unity Medical Center Facebook page.