Manchester Parks and Recreation is nearing completion of a new playground behind the old Riverview School, which is located off of Emerson St. The new playground, which is designed for children 13 and older, is described by Parks Director Bonnie Gamble as “more of an obstacle course/ American Ninja type of area.” Equipment is installed and Gamble said she hopes that crews will begin surfacing by next week. She said that the playground should be ready to open within the next few weeks. The cost of the project is $200,902, which is fully funded by a Diabetes Initiative Grant...

Active cases of COVID-19 in Coffee County jumped up to near 100 on Thursday, with 98 active cases. Since testing began in March, Coffee County has seen 233 total cases with 135 recoveries, leaving 98 active cases. There have been zero reported deaths in Coffee County, according to TDH. Meanwhile, there are approximately 33,565 active cases across the state of Tennessee. There have been 891 confirmed deaths and 4,016 hospitalizations, with 109 new hospitalizations in the past...

Coffee County Schools continue to establish guidelines and procedures as the opening of schools draws closer amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Transportation guidelines are now available for students who will ride school buses. Among the guidelines are: 1 – families are asked to check each child’s temperature everyday. Temperatures at or above 100.4 are considered elevated and students should stay home. 2 – buses will be disinfected at least 2x per day after the morning and evening run. 3 – Windows will remain lowered in transit to allow additional air flow 4 – Temperatures will be taken when students enter...

Manchester City Schools announced plans for a staggered orientation on Aug. 3, with parents and students coming at different times based on last names, and a later time for parents choosing virtual learning.  In order to accommodate the needs of our families and to limit the number of adults entering the buildings, Manchester City Schools will operate on a modified schedule August 3, 2020. Registration will be held on a staggered schedule, with traditional students (attending in person) registering in the morning and virtual students (attending online) registering in the afternoon. Traditional Registration – College Street and Westwood Elementary...

Coffee County Central High School released its plans and guidelines to begin the 2020-2021 school year on time, August 3 with orientation. First and foremost, students should register online before orientation on Aug. 3. You can register online here:  If you do not have internet access, call 931-723-5159. Those choosing virtual learning must do so by July 24. Here are some of the guidelines that will be followed at CHS this year. 1 – students temperatures will be checked daily. Students with temperatures 100.4 or higher will be taken to an isolated room and evaluated further. 2 – desks,...

Members of the Manchester, Tennessee Veterans of Foreign Wars All-American Post 10904 Auxiliary demonstrated the Post’s support for local law enforcement professionals Friday, July 17. VFW Auxiliary members pooled their money together to buy and deliver five dozen donuts to the Manchester Police Department. The VFW Auxiliary gave the Department a sign and included a memo to Chief of Police Mark Yother. The memo read: “Your Mission Statement, in part. ‘is to make our city a place where all people can live, work, and visit safely without fear.’ Our proclamation is simple: MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!” Pictured are, L-R: Auxiliary members...

Coffee County now has 93 active cases of COVID-19 virus, according to the Tennessee Department of Health. This is up 14 from the prior day. Since testing began in March, there have been 220 total cases of the virus in Coffee County. Of these, 127 have recovered, leaving 93 total active cases. There have been no deaths reported from Coffee County, according to TDH. Across the state, there are approximately 32,430 active cases. There have been 81,122 confirmed cases since testing began, with 47,852 recoveries. There have been 840 confirmed deaths and 3,798 hospitalizations. To date, 1,237,411 people in...

Thunder Radio News has learned that testing for COVID-19 virus in Coffee County will soon be centralized at the now-abandoned Southern Family Markets building located at 2050 Hillsboro Blvd in Manchester. Currently, testing is available at the Department of Health locations in Manchester and Tullahoma. Once set up, all testing will move to the Southern Family Markets building. Officials were on site Tuesday to prepare the location.  “All of the testing for the county will be done at the one location here,” said Allen Lendley with Coffee County EMA. “Basically they will be testing all day (during business hours)....