News

Medical oxygen is a necessity for those suffering from respiratory illnesses, but, tragically, medical oxygen has been present in several home fires that resulted in the deaths of Tennesseans in 2018. 
State fire data shows medical oxygen was present in 9% of the fatal fires that have occurred so far in 2018 (eight out of 89 total fatalities). In October 2018 alone, medical oxygen was present in one-third of fatal home fires (two out of six fire fatalities). As winter approaches and people spend more time indoors, the Tennessee State Fire Marshal’s Office (SFMO) urges consumers using medical oxygen to renew their commitment to taking fire-safety precautions in order to prevent fires and burns from occurring.
 
“Complying with the safety instructions provided by the home medical oxygen supplies is imperative in protecting yourself, your property, and your loved ones from unintended, dangerous fires,” said Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance Commissioner and State Fire Marshal Julie Mix McPeak. “There is no reason for anyone to ever smoke while using medical oxygen, period.”
 
Why is medical oxygen so prevalent in home fire deaths? Fire needs three things to grow: Heat, fuel, and oxygen. Where medical oxygen is present, the surrounding air’s oxygen saturation is increased. This allows fires to start easier and burn hotter and faster, making escape more difficult.
 
The SFMO encourages Tennesseans to remember the following tips to avoid fire hazards associated with the presence of medical oxygen:

There is no safe way to smoke in a home when medical oxygen is in use. A person utilizing medical oxygen should never smoke.

Candles, matches, wood stoves, and even sparking toys can be ignition sources and should not be used in a home where medical oxygen is present.

Keep oxygen cylinders at least five feet from heat sources, open flames, or electrical devices.

Items containing oil or grease, like hand lotion, can easily ignite. Keep oil and grease away from where medical oxygen is being used.

Never use aerosol sprays, especially those that indicate flammable contents, near the oxygen.

Post “No Smoking” and “No Open Flames” signs inside and outside the home to remind people that medical oxygen is present.

Ensure smoke alarm are working by testing them monthly. Replace the unit if it is more than 10 years old.

Create a home fire escape plan with two ways out of every room and a designated meeting place outside. Practice the plan with every member of the household.

For more information on keeping you and your family fire safe, visit tn.gov/fire.  
 

Good news for those who work at General Motors’ Spring Hill plant. GM will add a third vehicle to its production lineup at Spring Hill plant next year. It was announced on the same day of the company’s announcement of a sweeping $6 billion cost-cutting plan across the country. 
A General Motors spokeswoman said a future Cadillac crossover will be produced in Spring Hill.
 
Bringing in a third vehicle provides the assembly plant with another model to fill production capacity. The plant already produces the crossover Cadillac XT5 and GMC Acadia midsize SUV. It is scaled to assemble more than 250,000 vehicles per year
 
 
The Detroit-based automaker on Monday announced plans to slash 15 percent of its salaried workforce, ceasing production at five plants in North America and discontinuing several passenger car models.
 
 
The move comes as the automaker prioritizes self-driving cars and electric vehicles, in addition to bigger vehicles that are outselling sedans.  
 

With only four days remaining until the application deadline, tnAchieves still needs nearly 1,400 mentors across the state. Cannon County needs 17 and Cannon County has 19 according to Director of Schools William F. Curtis. 
 
Mentors support local TN Promise applicants as they transition from high school to college.  Mentors remind students of important deadlines, serve as a trusted college resource and, most importantly, encourage students to reach their full potential.  The time commitment is small, only about one hour per month, but the impact can be life changing for students, particularly those in their family that are first to attend college.
 
 
The program needs 9,000 mentors annually to ensure each of the 64,000 applicants is paired with this important support system.  While the financial component of the program may grab many students immediate attention, the mentor support system is the backbone of the program.
 
 
Since its inception in 2008, tnAchieves has helped more than 300,000 students navigate the college going process and trained more than 42,000 volunteer mentors.
 
 
Potential mentors must be 21 years of age, are subject to a background check and complete a one hour training.  For more information, or to apply, you can visit www.tnachieves.org or contact Thomas at (615) 604-1306 or graham@tnachieves.org
 
 

The first day of December is this Saturday and Cannon County residents will have many ways to welcome the month and the holiday season with the traditional activities of the Woodbury Lions Club. 
A pancake breakfast will start the day at the Lions Club building. Lions Club members will prepare and serve pancakes and all the trimmings. During the morning, one of the busiest people of the season, Santa Claus will stop by with Mrs. Claus for visits and photo opportunities.
 
The Christmas Parade begins at Noon, stepping off from the corner of Adams and Main Street.   Anyone wishing to place an entry in the parade is invited to do so.  Please make sure your entry is readily and clearly identified on the passenger side, so that you can be identified during the broadcast of the parade.  The Woodbury Lions Club will provide a float for Santa to ride as the end of the parade; so since Santa is coming all this way during his busiest time of the year, we ask only that there be no look-alikes to confuse the children along the route, please.  No ATV type four- or three-wheelers are permitted.  Candy, etc. can be thrown for parade viewers, but only with care and caution; Lions battle blindness every day, we do not need to cause any at a Christmas Parade, nor do we need to get anyone stepped on or run over trying to reach candy right beside the parade itself.  We hope everyone in Cannon County and beyond can come enjoy this wonderful celebration that kicks-off the Christmas Season!   
 
Staging areas for participants are as follows:
·        Floats and Marching Bands:  Woodbury Grammar School Parking lot
·        Cars and other vehicles with no trailers (antiques, classics, tractors, dignitaries, etc):  Lions Club parking lot
·        Emergency Response Vehicles (Fire & Rescue):  Annie Cox Drive on west side of WGS (line up nose out starting at corner of Annie Cox and W Adams)
·        Horses and Mules:  Horses on one end and Mules on the other of the field near the Clayton Glenn Champions Arena behind the Ag Extension Office and Rescue Squad Building.  First ones arriving can choose their ends. 
·        Police and Flag Horse:  Middle Tennessee Electric Parking Lot 
 
 
Informational maps can be picked up at the UT Ag Extension Office on W Lehman Street.  The Parade Route will run from west to east down Main Street beginning at 12 pm.  There will be some congestion on W Adams(by-pass) and W Lehman Streets from 10:00 – 12:30 as the parade stages and steps off at noon.  Other routes through town will also be blocked or delayed as the parade makes its circle through town; so please plan your day and trips accordingly.  Main Street (US Highway 70S) will be blocked for nearly an hour as the parade passes through town.  The Parade will turn right (south) onto Highway 53 at McDonalds and First Bank.  It will then turn right (west) onto W Lester Street to pass behind the viewing windows at the Woodbury Nursing Center, so that residents there can enjoy the festivities from the warmth of the building (please wave as you go by!).  It will then turn left (south) onto College Street and right (west) onto W Lehman to conclude at the staging areas in which it started. 
 
The Woodbury Lions Club will host the Annual Christmas Tour of Homes on the evening of Saturday, December 1st from 4-8 pm.  With hospitality that would warm the heart of old Fezziwig himself, Cannon Countians will open their doors and welcome visitors to bask in the glow of Christmas Cheer.  Tickets are $6 and can be purchased from Lions Club Members or at the Lions Memorial Building on Saturday, December 1 during Pancake Breakfast with Santa from 7-10 am or at the time of Tour of Homes.   
 
Current Stops on the Tour:
1.      Lions Memorial Building; We Serve Circle; Woodbury (Includes the Carolyn Motley Christmas Village)
2.      Mark & Pat Weiland, 1634 Bradyville Rd, Readyville
3.      Cannon Inn, 132 Masey Drive, (Gerri & Ronnie Nichols), Woodbury
4.      Jeff & Jeannette Todd, 209 College St., Woodbury
5.      Chris Coats, 3809 John Bragg Hwy, Woodbury
6.      Tim & Kathy Gannon, 451 Todd Rd, Woodbury
7.      Bill Smith cabin, 1604 John Bragg Hwy, Woodbury
 
100% of the money goes back to serve our community.  So, come kick-off the Christmas Season by helping a great cause. 
 

The Tennessee Department of Commerce warns buyers that if a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is.Tennessee’s high ranking for fraud and financial abuse complaints to the Federal Trade Commission has motivated local groups to come together to help prevent scams. Kevin Walters, communications director at the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance, said it’s a real challenge.
“Scammers are becoming increasingly sophisticated. They are cunning and they’re ruthless and, a lot of times, they’re anonymous,” Walters said. “And they can use technology to cloak phone numbers to hide their location.”
He said this year, cases of fraud and financial abuse are up more than 33 percent statewide.
Doing research on special offers and charitable groups is key, especially during the holiday season. Walters warned that scammers use these organizations as a cover to take advantage of a person’s good nature – and it’s okay to say “no” to giving your financial information to anyone over the phone.
“If someone’s contacting you to get that information and you’ve never spoken to them before, and they’re calling you out of the blue, again, that’s a red flag that they’re probably after more than just a donation to their charity,” he said. “They’re probably after much more than that, and it could lead to some real problems down the road for you and your family.”
 
In 2017, the FTC said Tennesseans filed more than 43,000 fraud reports, totaling losses of almost $14 million. Walters added seniors and adults with disabilities are among the most vulnerable targets for scams.
 
TDHS Adult Protective Services received more than 4,000 complaints of financial exploitation in the past year. So, the problem of fraud and identity theft is growing, across Tennessee and all segments of the population, in particular for elderly and vulnerable adults.
 
It is important to report scams to local law enforcement and get information from the AARP Fraud Watch Network at aarp.org/fraudwatchnetwork.
 

Bridgestone Americas has announced it is expanding the company’s Warren County commercial truck and bus radial tire manufacturing facility as part of a three-year, $40 million investment to meet market demand and address emerging customer needs. The expansion of the 28-year-old nationally-recognized facility is expected to break ground before year end. 
Greg Harris, executive director, Commercial Manufacturing for Bridgestone Americas said the following, “Warren County is one of the company’s most productive operations, and this investment will further improve the plant’s global competitive position by expanding production capacity for truck and bus radial tires.”
 
The expansion will focus on the addition of 32,000 square feet of manufacturing space to accommodate new equipment that will increase plant capacity by 275 tires per day, bringing daily production to 9,400 tires per day by the end of 2020.
 
The Warren County tire plant has a long history of outstanding performance and best practices in manufacturing. The facility shipped its one millionth tire in 1993, only three years after it opened. That same year, the plant produced nearly 2,500 tires per day. The plant produced its 60 millionth tire in June 2017. Expansions and upgrades contributed to additional increases in production to reach the 9,125 tires it currently produces daily.
 

Highly anticipated crops like pumpkins usually get all of the attention during the autumn months. Tennessee mushrooms, however, are coming out of the woodwork this season as a nutrient powerhouse. 
Mushrooms provide many health benefits, including several nutrients and antibacterial properties. These fungi are typically grown outdoors during the spring and fall months. However, with the help of a controlled indoor environment, one Tennessee farmer produces several varieties year-round.   
 
John Lawton of Possum Bottom Farms in Marion County reports, “We cultivate 39 strains of gourmet culinary mushrooms, including multiple strains of shiitake and even a few of the medicinal varieties. We maintain all of our cultures in our onsite lab. We also produce our own seed spawn onsite, insuring absolute quality control of our products.”
 
Lawton grows his mushrooms from start to finish using locally-obtained agricultural waste products, such as wheat straw, sawdust, wood chips, and logs. Like many other mushroom producers, Possum Bottom Farms strives to pick and deliver to restaurants and grocery markets in the same day. “This gives you and your customers the freshest mushrooms available by far,” Lawton said.
 
Go to www.PickTNProducts.org or use the free Pick Tennessee mobile app to find a local mushroom producer or farmers market near you. Follow “PickTNProducts” on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to learn more about current seasonal recipes, products, and activities.
 

As families gather for Thanksgiving Day feasts today, the Tennessee State Fire Marshal’s Office reminds Tennesseans the recipe for holiday fire safety always includes add good cooking safety habits. 
Thanksgiving is the No. 1 day of the year for home fires involving cooking equipment, with three times the average number of fires, according to the National Fire Protection Association.  An estimated 2,000 Thanksgiving Day fires in residential buildings are reported to U.S. fire departments each year according to the U.S. Fire Administration. In Tennessee, 26 percent of reported home structure fires in 2017 involved cooking equipment. Those 1,672 fires resulted in 12 civilian fatalities, 43 civilian injuries, two firefighter injuries and over $6 million of direct property damage, according to the Tennessee Fire Incident Reporting System.
 
According to State Fire Marshall Julie Mix Mc Peak, “Careless cooking can turn a relaxing family get-together into an emergency. We’re urging Tennesseans to practice fire-safe behavior this Thanksgiving to protect themselves, their families, and their properties. We want everyone to have a safe and fire-free Thanksgiving this year!”
 
For more information on making your home fire-safe, download and print the State Fire Marshal’s home fire safety checklist

Thanksgiving travelers will not be delayed by construction on Tennessee roads during this busy travel holiday. TDOT will halt all lane closure activity on interstates and state highways in anticipation of higher traffic volumes across the state. All construction related lane closures will be stopped beginning at noon on Wednesday, November 21, 2018 through 6:00 a.m. Monday, November 26, 2018. 
“Over 1.1 million motorists are expected to drive to their holiday destinations this year in Tennessee,” said TDOT Commissioner John Schroer. “This is the most traveled holiday of the year. Halting road work during this busy time will provide maximum capacity on our highways and help alleviate congestion, especially during the predicted peak travel days of Wednesday and Sunday. TDOT’s regional HELP Trucks will also be working throughout the holiday weekend to assist with incidents that may occur along the interstates.”
 
While all lane closure activity will be stopped, workers may be on site in some construction zones. Long-term lane closures will also remain in place on some construction projects for motorists’ safety. Motorists are reminded to drive safely and obey the posted speeds, especially in work zones. Drivers convicted of speeding in work zones where workers are present face a fine of up to $500, plus court fees and possible increased insurance premiums. 
 
The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security and TDOT are partnering with law enforcement across the state for the I-40 Challenge, with the goal of having zero fatalities on the 455 miles of I-40 in Tennessee. Wednesday, November 21st through Sunday, November 25th, the Tennessee Highway Patrol will have troopers stationed every 20 miles on I-40, along with increased law enforcement on all highways.
 
AAA predicts 54.3 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more during the Thanksgiving holiday, an increase of 4.8 percent over last year. Tennesseans make up 1.24 million of those travelers, with an estimated 1.18 million expected to travel by automobile.
 
From your desktop or mobile device, get the latest construction activity and live streaming SmartWay traffic cameras at www.TNSmartWay.com/Traffic. Travelers can also dial 511 from any land-line or cellular phone for travel information, or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TN511 for statewide travel. As always, drivers are reminded to use all motorist information tools wisely and Know Before You Go! by checking travel conditions before leaving for your destination. Drivers should never tweet, text or talk on a cell phone while behind the wheel.
 
In 2016, the Tennessee Department of Transportation lost three workers in the line of duty. All three were struck by passing motorists. Those tragedies bring the total number of TDOT lives lost to 112. We don’t want to lose another member of our TDOT family. We’re asking you to WORK WITH US. Click on the WORK WITH US logo to learn more.
 
 

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is at the scene of an officer involved shooting in Warren County. 
 
According to a TBI release, “At the request of 31st District Attorney General, TBI Agents are investigating a reported officer-involved shooting in Warren County,”
 
                              
TBI said initial reports indicate investigators from the Warren County Sheriff’s Department
were informed a suspect wanted in another county was in Warren County. Deputies spotted the suspect’s vehicle and began a brief pursuit. The TBI said the suspect turned down C Rody Road from U.S. Highway 70S (Nashville Highway), turned his car sideways and began firing at officers, with the deputies exchanging gunfire.
 
 
The suspect was taken by helicopter to a Chattanooga hospital. No officers were injured.