Local News

From Local 3 News: Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee says counties severely impacted by Hurricane Helene will soon be able to access a new $100 million loan program designed to help clear debris and repair damaged water systems.Lee announced the program, dubbed the Helene Emergency Assistance Loan or HEAL program, on Thursday. The Republican says the no-interest loans will go toward communities while they w...

UPDATE: The student that was killed in the Haunted Hilltop tragedy has been confirmed to be a student at the Chattanooga School for Liberal Arts. The school has created a GoFundMe to honor the student, as well as support his family during this time. PREVIOUS STORY: The Hamilton County Sheriff's Department and the Highway 58 Fire Department responded to a call at the Haunted Hilltop that a child ha...

From Local 3 News: Gunfire broke out among a crowd near Tennessee State University's homecoming celebrations, killing one person and wounding nine others, police said.A crowd that gathered earlier Saturday for homecoming events was thinning out when people in two groups near the campus began shooting at around 5 p.m., said Metro Nashville Police spokesperson Don Aaron. Shell casings indicate that ...

Update, 10/13/24- Dayren Lopez-Roque was extradited back to Tennessee by the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office and is currently in custody at the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office Justice Center, awaiting trial for First Degree Murder in the death of Dayana Garcia, age 25. Previous Story:In just less than 24 hours, first-degree murder suspect, Dayren Lopez Roque, 41, was located and arrested at approx...

From Local 3 News: The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) says a death investigation has led to at least one person being taken into custody on Thursday.Deputies were called to a home in the 8200 block of Thrush Hollow Lane near Standifer Gap Road at around 12:40pm.Details are limited at this time.No names, including the suspect's, have been released.The HCSO says there is no threat to the co...

From Local 3 News: A Ferrari caught on fire while being fueled at a Signal Mountain gas station on the evening of Thursday, October 10.The car caught on fire at Citgo/Hill-Top Market, the Signal Mountain Fire Department says.The car sustained major damage, as well as damage to the fuel pump and canopy above the car.Fuel pumps were shut off due to the incident. No injuries were sustained by the dri...

From Local 3 News: In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, which devastated homes and businesses across Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is urging residents to avoid swimming or boating near dams.TVA spokesperson Scott Fiedler emphasized that the water conditions remain hazardous due to fluctuating water levels and debris from upstream.“Currently, we are s...

From Local 3 News: Hurricane Milton made landfall Wednesday along Florida’s Gulf Coast as a Category 3 storm, bringing powerful winds, deadly storm surge and potential flooding to much of the state.Milton drew fuel from exceedingly warm Gulf of Mexico waters, twice reaching Category 5 status.The cyclone had maximum sustained winds of 120 mph (205 kph) when it roared ashore in Siesta Key, Florida, ...

From Local 3 News: A safety audit for Snow Hill Road and Hunter Road is in the works, the Hamilton County Mayor's Office said.Findings from recent road studies coupled with public safety concerns on the two heavily-trafficked roads have highlighted the need for an audit.Gabe Lowe, a senior at Ooltewah High School, believes that Snow Hill Road presents too many dangers for new and young drivers."As...

From Local 3 News: Tennessee's corrections chief said Wednesday that the department expects to unveil a new process for executing inmates by the end of the year, signaling a possible end to a yearslong pause due to findings that several inmates were put to death without the proper testing of lethal injection drugs.“We should have our protocols in place by the end of this calendar year or at the fi...

From Local 3 News: UPDATE: TBI special agents are investigating an officer-involved shooting that occurred Tuesday afternoon in Hamilton County, leaving one person dead.The preliminary investigation shows that members of the U.S. Marshals Service Smokey Mountain Fugitive Task Force were attempting to locate a wanted person in an apartment complex on North Germantown Road.While questioning differen...

From Local 3 News: Hurricane Milton is moving towards Florida as a Category 4 storm, prompting evacuations across the state.With outages also expected, TVA is sending 100 linemen to help power restoration.The linemen will stop at a halfway point to their Florida destination to avoid being directly in the hurricane's path.Once the storm has passed, the linemen will head on down to the Tampa and Orl...

From Local 3 News: The Tennessee Wildlife Federation is asking hunters for help to feed Hurricane Helene victims.They say food banks and shelters are in desperate need of meet protein to serve to families and the servicemen helping with recovery efforts.Processors with Hunters for the Hungry have capacity for deer donations to serve the need.Fourteen deer donations have already been processed and ...

Chattanooga has become the seventh US city to collect data on all single adults experiencing homelessness.According to the press release, most have relied on the annual Point-in-Time Count, which records the number of those experiencing homelessness on a single night in January.Community Solutions' Quality by name data has pushed this idea further by providing a comprehensive source of information...

TDOT says their crews have worked nearly 50-thousand hours, combined, toward cleaning up upper east Tennessee following the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Helene.Although progress has been made, TDOT says there is still more work ahead, and "every mile matters."Click here to learn more about the clean-up efforts.  ......

The Bradley County Commission met on Monday covering several items of business.Bradley County Mayor D. Gary Davis reported a memo for the minutes stating gambling tax has been collected in the general fund and transferred to the capital projects fund per requirements. A resolution was passed authorizing the Mayor to negotiate and sign a contract for work to take down a hill at the Minnis Road fire...

From Local 3 News: A local business owner has been indicted on seven counts of theft.According to court records, a Hamilton County grand jury indicted Richard “Rick” Davis on theft of property.Records show five of those counts center on property valued between $10,000 and $60,000.Two counts were for property valued between $2,500 and $10,000.Davis was booked at the Hamilton County Jail and Detenti...

Cleveland Utilities (CU) is actively preparing for the upcoming implementation of the Federal Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Lead and Copper Rule Revision (LCRR). One of the key components of the revisions requires water systems to create an inventory of water service line materials on both the utility side and the customer side of a water meter.CU has always placed the safety of the wate...

SR 350 in Greene County and SR 133 in Johnson County are open to traffic one week after Hurricane Helene swept through East Tennessee destroying five bridges and causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to infrastructure.Following the storm, SR 350, known locally as Jones Bridge Road, was piled 30 feet high with debris. Chunks of the road were washed away, exposing bare dirt and bent util...

From Local 3 News: One of the primary routes between eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina could be closed for the next year, all as result of the considerable storm damage from Hurricane Helene and the flooding from the storm.Interstate 40, which usually links Knoxville travelers to and from Asheville, is expected to be closed in some form until October of 2025, according to the North Caro...