Category: News

The Tullahoma chicken and biscuits restaurant Bojangles that opened its doors in September 2016, closed Sunday after less than two years of operation. The eatery on North Jackson St employed between 30 and 35 people.
On Aug. 2, the restaurant chain announced the closure of 10 stores with “negative cash flow” and the refranchising of 30 other stores following poor second quarter performance.
Not all Tullahoma employees will be without jobs following the closure as many were offered jobs at other Bojangles’ locations such as Manchester and Shelbyville which will remain open.

Motlow State Community College and the Mechatronics program have been awarded a $545,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for a 36-month project to introduce the concepts and technologies of Smart Manufacturing to the educators of advanced manufacturing in the United States.
The project, titled “Smart Manufacturing for America’s Revolutionizing Technological Transformation” will feature Motlow as a national hub for training Smart Manufacturing for Mechatronics and Advanced Manufacturing educators across the nation.
Smart Manufacturing, defined in Congress in 2015 and also known as Industry 4.0, combines automated processes with networks of advanced sensors, data analytics, and information and communication technologies needed to support improved productivity. It has been widely recognized as a groundbreaking technological trend with the potential to transform manufacturing industries.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are now warning five states, including Tennessee about Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.
The CDC says Tennessee, North Carolina, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Missouri account for over 60 percent of spotted fever cases in the nation.
The disease is transmitted by ticks and can be fatal without immediate treatment.
Symptoms can include a high fever, headache, pain in the muscles and discomfort.
The CDC saying its crucial to keep an eye on these warning signs and get treatment within the first five days.

While matches and lighters are useful resources to adults, curious children may use them to unintentionally start fires. The Tennessee State Fire Marshal’s Office (SFMO) is urging parents to talk to their kids about the safe uses of matches and lighters, while ensuring these tools are stored in a secure location out of a child’s reach and sight.
Novelty lighters resembling children’s toys can attract curious kids who may see these items as fun but may not recognize them as potential fire hazards. While Tennessee banned the sale of novelty lighters in 2008, these products can still be found and represent a potential threat to lives and property.
In the last five years (2013-2017), Tennessee fire departments reported 400 fires in which playing with matches or lighters was a contributing factor, according to the Tennessee Fire Incident Reporting System. Fires resulting from playing with matches or lighters caused one civilian death, 19 civilian injuries, one firefighter injury, and $4.8 million in property damage during that time. More than half of those fires were structure fires.
The SFMO offers the following fire safety tips for parents:
• Supervise children closely. Many fires happen when young children are left alone, even for a short period of time.
• Set clear rules and consequences about fire misuse.
• Keep matches and lighters in a locked drawer or cabinet, high out of the reach of children.
• Purchase and use only lighters designed with child-resistant features. Remember, child-resistant does not mean child-proof.
• Teach young children to never touch matches and lighters, and to tell a grownup if they find them. Children need to understand that fire is difficult to control; it is fast and can hurt as soon as it touches you.
• Take the mystery out of fire by teaching children that fire is a tool for adults, not a toy for children. Never use lighters or matches as a source of amusement for children; they may try to do the same.
• Check under beds and in closets for burned matches, evidence your child might be playing with fire.
• Have working smoke alarms inside each sleeping area, outside each sleeping area, and on every level of your home.
• Develop a home fire escape plan, practice it with your children and designate a safe meeting place outside your residence.
• Teach children not to hide from firefighters. Show them how to crawl on the floor below smoke, to get out of the home, and to stay out.
• Demonstrate how to stop, drop to the ground, and roll if their clothes catch fire. Make sure your children can differentiate stop, drop, and roll from other fire safety messages.

On Wednesday afternoon (August 8th, 2018) at approximately 5:15pm Coffee County deputies responded to a home on Ramsey Road, Morrison in reference to a domestic assault. While deputies Eric Young and Tim Cooper were in route they were updated that the domestic incident had allegedly begun in a vehicle and the people were now inside the home.
According to the arrest warrant, upon arrival deputies found a female victim in the bathroom cleaning her clothes from blood stains and with her arms bleeding from possible knife wounds. Coffee County EMS was called and treated the victim on site. The warrant states that deputies were able to locate a large kitchen knife and a small metal hatchet with blood stains on both items.
39 year-old Robert Lee Ladd was charged with Aggravated Assault and placed on $50,000 bond and he appeared in court for a preliminary hearing on Thursday (August 9, 2018).

The Coffee County Sheriff’s Department is asking for the public’s help with identifying a person for questioning concerning a fraud case. This is an investigation into the fraudulent use of a credit card that occurred recently in Coffee County.
If can identify the person in the picture shown, please contact Coffee County Sheriff’s Department Investigator James Sherrill at 931-570-4404 or the non-emergency number at the Coffee County Communication Center at 931-728-9555.

Carbon monoxide often is thought of as a winter threat with the use of heaters, but summer recreation activities also can generate the gas that could prove deadly if you’re exposed to it in confined spaces.
Every year, the state receives reports of carbon monoxide poisoning from people using campers, boats and other recreational equipment with engines.
“These are places where people tend to be sort of in a small space and they’re often using gas stoves, or running machines, or even their car,” explains Dr. Tim Jones, state epidemiologist at the Tennessee Department of Health.
Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include a headache, dizziness, nausea and vomiting.
If you suspect you or someone else is experiencing it, open all windows and doors and go to an area with fresh air.
If someone is sick, call 911 and the Tennessee Poison Center at 1-800-222-1222.
To prevent poisoning from happening, inspect your RV generator regularly, test your vehicles carbon monoxide detector, and never use a gas generator inside of a home.
Jones says sometimes the sickness may take you by surprise.
“We’ve had some very severe cases where people have been swimming underneath pontoon boats, sort of in between the pontoons, where air is kind of still and exhaust has accumulated under there,” he relates.
Nationwide, 20,000 to 30,000 people are sickened by accidental carbon monoxide poisoning and approximately 500 people die, many in their own homes.

The Tennessee Historical Commission has announced the addition of four properties to the National Register of Historic Places. They include a 20th century municipal building, a farmstead, an insurance company building and a 1799 house.
“Tennessee’s unique heritage is exemplified by these recent National Register nominations. Ranging from a late 18th century residence to a Mid-Century Modern commercial building, the listed properties depict the diversity of the state’s history,” said Executive Director and State Historic Preservation Officer Patrick McIntyre.
The sites recently added to the National Register of Historic Places include:
Tullahoma Municipal Building (Tullahoma – Coffee County)
The opening of Arnold Engineering Development Center outside of Tullahoma in 1951 resulted in ancillary businesses moving into Tullahoma, with a resulting increase in population and the need for more city services. In 1954 the city constructed a Mid-Century Modern municipal building to house city offices and the offices of the Tullahoma Power System. The steel frame structure of the building is enclosed in Georgia marble and brick with many sizable windows on the public facades. The Chattanooga firm of Bianculli, Palm and Purnell was chosen to design the building. Mario Bianculli was a widely-known architect who had worked for the Tennessee Valley Authority. His firm was familiar with designing multi-use government buildings like the one planned for Tullahoma. The building served as the center for government and electric power until 1977, when the power company outgrew its space and relocated.

After issuing an emergency call for blood and platelet donors in early July, the American Red Cross continues to face an emergency blood shortage. Eligible donors of all blood types are urged to give now. As a special thank you, all those who come to donate blood or platelets now through Aug. 30, 2018, will receive a $5 Amazon.com Gift Card* via email. Donate locally here:
Thursday, August 16, 2018
First Baptist Church
1006 Hillsboro Rd.
Manchester, TN 37355
2-6PM

On Monday afternoon at approximately 12:15 pm on I-24 in Coffee County, Tennessee Highway Patrolman Donnie Clark received a “Be on the Lookout” for a stolen vehicle traveling westbound on the interstate. Trooper Clark observed the vehicle as the “BOLO” was given out and immediately attempted to make a traffic stop at the 111-mile marker. The subject refused to stop and continued at a high rate of speed only to allegedly slam on the brakes causing Trooper Clark to make contact with the stolen vehicle. The subject went off the interstate at the 110-exit ramp onto Hwy 53 and turned left onto Paradise Street. Trooper Clark maintained visual of the stolen vehicle as it traveled in a reckless manner through residents’ yards damaging multiple fences. He traveled off-road through soybean fields apparently damaging the crops in an attempt to get away. Trooper Clark along with numerous Coffee County deputies were able to surround the vehicle in a field off the Old Woodbury Hwy where Trooper Clark’s SUV was rammed, disabling his patrol unit and the suspect then gave up and was taken into custody.
The vehicle was confirmed stolen from Antioch TN. It was a 2015 Ford F-250 4×4 valued at approximately $40,000.
Marcus Lee Brown age 24 of Greer, SC was arrested and charged with Theft of Property and Evading Arrest. Bond for Brown was set at $60,000 and he is set at to appear in Coffee County General Sessions Court on August 28, 2018.