The American Red Cross blood supply has reached emergency levels with 50,000 fewer donations than expected in June. This shortfall leaves the Red Cross with half the readily available blood products on hand now than this time last year. The Red Cross is calling on all eligible blood donors – now more than ever – to roll up a sleeve and give as soon as possible. All blood types are needed, but especially O positive, O negative, B negative and A negative in order to meet patient demand this summer. An unseasonably early start to spring may be a contributing...

A report by the University of Tennessee Center for Business and Economic Research has found students who earn their bachelor’s degrees within four years make higher salaries. The study was done in cooperation with the Tennessee Higher Education Commission and it found timely completion of an undergraduate degree translates into a stronger income. THEC policy adviser David Wright told WMOT in Murfreesboro the finding was a surprise. Wright said the best guess is that students who finish in four years are better focused and self-motivated – qualities that employers value. The research showed students who took six or more...

A new Miss Tennessee was crowned over the weekend in Jackson. Twenty-two-year-old Chandler Lawson of Tullahoma will represent Tennessee in the nationally-televised Miss America pageant in January. The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga senior won the competition Saturday night. She told WBBJ-TV in Jackson that being Miss Tennessee has been her goal since she was seven years old when she met a former Miss Tennessee beauty queen in her classroom. Lawson said she plans to meet with more than 40,000 students in the weeks before the Miss America Pageant. The first runner-up was Kristen Mosley, of Capital City, and...

The Coffee County Commission will be meeting for an unusual second time this month, Tuesday night (June 26. 2012) at 6pm. Commissioners will be looking at the budget for 2012-13 with a slight increase in your property taxes. The increase would be 4-cents under the current proposal. Coffee County School and Transportation Department officials told the Budget and Finance Committee that they were requesting an additional $390,000 for the upcoming school year, primarily to purchase three new school buses and increased fuel cost despite the fact that the department is losing a total of eight buses now considered “too...

Officials are keeping an eye on Normandy Dam to make sure the area is adequately supplied with water. TVA officials say that Normandy had received less rainfall than it did during the severe drought of 2007. Conditions at the lake are extremely dry with the water area decreasing in size. Officials with TVA and the Duck River Development Agency say water levels are some seven feet low, though the reservoir has been lower at times. Officials said low water levels have had no impact on drinking water. Arnold Engineering and Development Center facilities are served by Woods Reservoir but...

Gas prices continue to fall across the country. The national average now sits at $3.45, down 22 cents from last month. The average price for a gallon of gas in Tennessee is $3.13. The low price for a gallon of gas in Tullahoma area yesterday was $2.99 a gallon, while the low in Manchester was...

Planning to vote in the Aug. 2 elections? Time is running out to register. The Coffee County Election Commission reminds prospective voters this week that Tuesday, July 3, is the deadline to register to cast ballots in this summer’s state primary, county general and Tullahoma and Manchester city elections. Voter registration can be done in person at the election commission office, Department of Safety and the post...

The Hillsboro Fire Department was sent to assist fire departments in Franklin County Saturday afternoon near Morris Ferry Bridge on Highway 127. According to Franklin County Sheriff Tim Fuller, LaJuana Valentine and her children were grilling under carport when a problem developed with the grill.  The outside wall caught fire, then flames spread to the attic. Capitol Hill, Estill Springs, Alto Oak Grove, Decherd and Hillsboro Fire Departments responded and fought the fire for some time. According to the sheriff, a deputy found two marijuana plants behind the residence. An investigation is continuing on the plants with charges to...