For the first time since 2001, there will be no Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival held in Manchester. The Bonnaroo festival for 2020 has been cancelled, organizers announced on Thursday. The festival, which was originally scheduled for June but was moved to Sept. 24-27 due to COVID-19 pandemic will now not take place at all. Organizers say the festival will return next year, June 17-20 at Great Stage Park in Manchester for a 20th year anniversary celebration. Bonnaroo officials said that ticket holders will be able to roll their tickets to next year, or get a refund. According to...

New claims for unemployment in Tennessee trended up last week, after 10 straight weeks of decline. According to numbers released by the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce, there were 21,155 new unemployment claims filed for the week ending June 20. This was up from 19,925 the prior week and was the first week that numbers went up after peaking at 116,141 the first week of April. Since March 15, when the COVID-19 pandemic began, there have been 643,799 new claims of unemployment filed in Tennessee. The continued claims did fall last week, down to 266,596, which is down...

Active cases of COVID-19 virus in Coffee County remain steady at 20 – the same as the previous day. There have been 102 total cases in Coffee County since testing began, with 82 recoveries. Meanwhile, across the state there are approximately 12,473 active cases. There have been 540 confirmed deaths and 2,431...

This summer, AAA forecasts Americans will take 700 million trips based on economic indicators and state re-openings. That number is down nearly 15% compared to last July through September and is the first decline in summer travel since 2009. AAA booking trends show Americans are making travel plans, though cautiously and more spur of the moment. “Americans will get out and explore this summer though they’re taking a ‘wait and see approach’ when it comes to booking and are likely to book more long weekend getaways than extended vacations,” said Megan Cooper, spokesperson, AAA – The Auto Club Group....

The Tennessee Board of Parole voted Wednesday that governor Bill Lee exonerate Adam Braseel – a Grundy County man who spent 12 years in prison for a killing that he says he did not commit. Braseel was freed from prison last August after new evidence brought to light Braseel’s innocence. The unanimous vote from the parole board clears the way for Lee to potentially completely exonerate Braseel of the charges. He entered an Alford plea upon his August release, a plea that does not admit guilt but admits that there may be enough evidence for a conviction. Looking for...

We are a week away from the City of Manchester’s annual Independence Day celebration. Although COVID-19 has forced this year’s celebration to look a little different with no live music or entertainment at Rotary Park, the city will still be shooting fireworks on Saturday, July 4, beginning at 9 p.m. Fireworks will be launched from the Manchester Recreation Center grounds. With other cities in the area cancelling or postponing their shows, Manchester’s show will go on and citizens and visitors from other areas are encouraged to find a suitable viewing area and remain socially distanced. Wherever you choose to...

Coffee County School System has a parent survey available online to gather input to begin the 2020-2021 school year amid COVID-19 concerns. The school system states that the goal is to open school as normal as possible. The schools state that health and safety protocols will include, but are not limited to the following: *Nurses will remain on staff at all school locations. *Students exhibiting symptoms will be evaluated by the school nurse. Parents will be informed to pick up their child, if necessary. *Masks will be optional for students and school personnel. *Regular temperature checks will be in...

Wednesday, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation released its 2019 ‘Crime in Tennessee’ publication, which details the volume and nature of crime, as reported by the state’s law enforcement agencies. The report compiles data submitted to TBI’s Tennessee Incident-Based Reporting System (TIBRS). Among the report’s findings:  The number of Group A offenses, generally considered the most serious criminal incidents, totaled 529,524 in 2019, a decrease of 5% from 2018.  Reported incidents of murder, rape, and weapons law violations all decreased in 2019.  Reported cases of kidnapping increased by 7.2% year-to-year.  The number of crimes reported as...