U.S. Coast Guard undergoing drills in Chattanooga

Drill involves joint training with local officials

CHATTANOOGA (WDEF) — The U.S. Coast Guard is conducting a week long-scale drill this week on the Tennessee River The maritime drill involves joint training with local law enforcement and fire rescue personnel. Lindsey Rogers of the Chattanooga Fire Department says operations, so far, have been successful. “What it simulated was a passenger vessel, almost like a riverboat, that started…

Prepare for a very slow escort of industrial equipment Saturday-Monday

The trip from Riverfront Parkway to Hickory Valley Road will take more than 4 hours.. each morning

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tennessee (WDEF) – The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office is warning drivers about some wide loads on the roads this weekend. They will be escorting three large industrial pieces of equipment to the Gestamp plant on Hickory Valley Road. They will be coming from Riverfront Parkway. The route has to be approved to make sure the roads can handle…

Harrison home destroyed by flames

HARRISON, Tennessee (WDEF) – A home in Harrison was destroyed by fire overnight. It was called in by an off-duty firefighter who saw the flames at 9149 Ooltewah Georgetown Road. The first firefighters on the scene found that everyone had gotten out of the house. No one was hurt. The house is a total loss. The cause of the fire…

GBI looking for suspect who blew up Georgia Guideposts

The "American Stonehenge" was seen by some as a monument to Satan

ELBERTON, Georgia (WDEF) – It may be a simple case of vandalism to the GBI, but some say it was a righteous act. Investigators are trying to determine who blew up a part of the Georgia Guidestones near Elberton, Georgia (East of Atlanta). The Guidestones have been called America’s Stonehenge, but some just say they were satanic. The Genesis of…

Blue Alert: Middle Tennessee Police tracking suspect who shot police officer

UPDATE: Suspect shot and killed tonight during a chase in Kentucky

UPDATE: Samuel Quinton Edwards was shot and killed tonight by police in Kentucky. State Police tracked him outside of Louisville and gave chase. They report he died in a shootout with police. ________________ HENDERSONVILLE, Tennessee (WDEF) – A search has ended in Millersville, Tennessee for a suspect wanted in a Blue Alert. Samuel Q. Edwards is wanted for the shooting…

Highland Park Baptist Church Fire Intentional – Person of Interest Sought

Chattanooga, TN (WDEF) – Investigators are searching for a person of interest in connection to the fire at Highland Park Baptist Church on June 10. The fire was intentionally set according to investigators. Photos from the scene show a man on a bicycle in the area around the time of the fire. Investigators seek the public’s help in identifying the…

TBI Update on Summer Wells Amber Alert one year later

The 5 year was first reported missing by her family one year ago today

BEECH CREEK, Tennessee (WDEF) – It has now been one year since Summer Wells disappeared in upper East Tennessee, and investigators still have no idea what happened to her. “At that time, no one imagined we would still be searching for her a year later.” The TBI updated the search for the missing 5 year old (last year) saying the…

Old Highland Park Church burns

11:25 UPDATE: Fire Dept. extends “shelter in place” to 5 blocks around church ______________ 11 PM UPDATE: from Chatt. Fire Dept. “Residents living within these blocks: 3rd Street to Highland Park Avenue, 3rd Street in between Glenwood Parkway and Highland Park Ave, extending South to East Main Street at Highland Park Ave and up to Dodds Avenue are asked to…

Troopers find major drug haul inside SUV engine block

vehicle was being hauled on I 40

JACKSON, Tennessee (WDEF) – Tennessee state troopers say they confiscated 44 pounds of cocaine and fentanyl in one traffic stop on Monday. But they had to work for it. A trooper pulled over a flatbed truck pulling a trailer on I-40 near Jackson in west Tennessee. The driver told him that he and a partner had been hired to drive…

Juvenile rescued after 85 foot waterfall jump at Fall Creek Falls

FALL CREEK FALLS, Tennessee (WDEF) – Dunlap Fire Department members helped with the rescue of a juvenile who jumped from the top of a waterfall. It happened at Fall Creek Falls State Park. Officials say the juvenile jumped (or dove) from the top of Caney Creek Falls into a swimming hole 85 feet below. The juvenile suffered severe injuries, but…

Do you recognize the man suspected of sneaking out ten fishing rods?

East Ridge Police post photos from Bass Pro Shop

EAST RIDGE, Tennessee (WDEF) – East Ridge Police are asking the public to help identify a suspect for shoplifting at the Bass Pro Shop. They say the man took rod and reel combos and hid them in his jacket. They say the suspect then left without paying. The ten fishing rods were valued at $1,219. If you can identify the…

Most popular wedding dress styles

Southern brides go their own way

(TENNESSEE) – Southern brides have their own style according to a new survey by PlannedAtHeart.com. The wedding planner site compared each state’s searches for wedding dresses online. Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama and North Carolina all had different tastes. COURTESY OF SACHIN AND BABI The most popular style across the country is a One Shoulder dress. Fire states searched for it the…

Erlanger Bledsoe Hospital cuts ribbon on new medical office building

PIKEVILLE, Tennessee (WDEF) – Erlanger Blesdoe Hospital opened a new medical office building on Tuesday. it includes 14 exam rooms, 2 procedure areas, a lab, nurse station and physician offices, plus a much larger waiting room. It is right next to the hospital entrance on Wheelertown Ave. The new building was designed to fit into the residential area instead of…

Can you identify suspects in an Ulta perfume shoplifing case

They got away with more than $3000 worth of perfume and cologne

UPDATE: Dalton Police say they have now identified the suspect. ________ DALTON, Georgia (WDEF) – Dalton Police are looking for a woman accused of shoplifting $3000 worth of cologne and perfume at a store. They say the thefts actually happened over two days. Police are trying to identify a female suspect and a young man with her who were recorded…

Roberts Mill Road repairs complete after slide damage

Road from Falling Water up Walden's Ridge is now open again

WALDEN’S RIDGE, Tennessee (WDEF) – Hamilton County reports that Roberts Mill Road is back open after more than two months of work to repair slide damage. The road is one of the few that goes up Walden’s Ridge. The slide opened up a large crack in the road in the last week of February and forced officials to close it….

Sheriff: “Major” Meth dealer busted in Marion County

JASPER, Tennessee (WDEF) – Sheriff Bo Burnett says a major drug figure has been indicted in Marion County. He says Michael Shane Dyer of Sequatchie, Tennessee already has six felony convictions in Marion, Grundy and Sequatchie Counties. He was nabbed in a five month long investigation involving undercover drug buys. Sheriff Burnett says “This joint investigation between the Sheriff’s Department…

Roberts Mill Road could reopen next week

Crews have been repairing slide damage from the winter

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tennessee (WDEF) – The Roberts Mill Road project is just about done. Work crews have completed firming up the roadbed and are ready to start paving on Wednesday. The road up Walden’s Ridge was shutdown in the winter after a slide opened up major cracks in the road. They have had to dig out the area, stabilize the…

Pipe Bombs found after man shows up at hospital with explosion wounds

PALMER, Tennessee (WDEF) – Grundy County officials release information on a pipe bomb case from over the weekend.   On Saturday night, 33 year old Carl James Arnold showed up at an emergency room in Dunlap with wounds consistent with an explosion.   The hospital contacted law enforcement.   Investigators were joined by ATF, FBI and THP officers to check…