UTC Women Ready to March on in March

We saw the UTC women punch their ticket to the Big Dance on Sunday after beating Wofford in the SoCon finals. The victory celebration turned into a big hug-fest. It was UTC’s first touranment title since 2017. Chattanooga is now 19-0 all time in the SoCon tournament finals. Incredible stat. And what an incredible season for first year head coach…

LFO Basketball Coach Josh Laney Resigns

LFO high school announced on Monday that head basketball coach Josh Laney has stepped down in order to spend more time with his family. Laney took over the Warriors program in the summer of 2018, and he led LFO to incredible success. He won 88 games, and he took the team to the state tournament the last four seasons. Categories:…

What’s Right With Our Schools: Skyuka Hall’s New Campus

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – Skyuka Hall has come a long way in 9 years. When it was founded, there were only a dozen students. Now, it’s a dually accredited K-12 independent school, and it’s about to move onto one of the most breath-taking campuses in Tennessee. Jill Ingalls is the Associate Head of School at Skyuka. She explains,”Skyuka Hall was…

Local Synagogues Celebrate Purim

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – The Jewish Community is celebrating the holiday of Purim starting tonight. It lasts through tomorrow. Purim celebrates the Jewish people being saved from a plot to destroy their culture during the Persian Empire. It’s based on a story from the Megillah, or the Book of Esther. The Chabad Jewish Center of Chattanooga is gearing up for…

Chicken feed spilled on I-59

18 wheeler overturns on interstate above Trenton

TRENTON, Georgia (WDEF) – The I-59 corridor from Trenton to the state line has claimed another 18-wheeler. This time a truck carrying chicken feed has overturned. The wreck is in the south bound lanes of the interstate just above Trenton. Crews are having to scoop up all the feed before opening up the interstate again. They think it will take…

Scenic City Speech ‘fills void’ in Ootlewah community

Jennifer Vitrano brings awareness to her brick and mortar speech pathology clinic

OOTLEWAH, Tenn. (WDEF) – Ootlewah is now home to Scenic City Speech, the only private practice with an office in town. This full service speech practice hosted an open house to let the community know they’re ready to help. News 12s Allie Schrenker digs deeper into how a local speech pathologist has been helping Ootlewah families. “If you think about…

Notre Dame falls short in state title game

COOKEVILLE, Tennessee (WDEF) – Notre Dame looking to win its first state title in school history and has a chance to do so Saturday against GoodPasture. Irish shot over 60-percent in the first half but couldn’t hold up in the second half as Cole McCormick missed much of the final period with a leg injury he suffered from a hard…

The Local Dive Retail Holds Grand Opening

The interior of the Local Dive Retail consignment shop, which held its grand opening on Saturday on the Northshore. CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF)- The Chattanooga Northshore welcomed in a new consignment shop today. The Local Dive Retail Consignment Shop opened at 6-33 Cherokee Boulevard with its grand opening event. The shop features numerous local vendors who sign up for spaces inside…

Two Tornadoes Strike Jackson County Friday

One of the two EF1 tornado paths that struck Jackson County Friday afternoon, this one near Section. (Courtesy: NWS Huntsville) SECTION, Ala. (WDEF)- The National Weather Service in Huntsville has confirmed two tornadoes touched down in Jackson County Friday afternoon. Both tornadoes were rated as EF-1’s with estimated wind speeds of 95 miles an hour. They both happened in succession…

Mocs Jake Stephens Returns and Throws Down a Double-Double in Win Over VMI

(gomocs.com) ASHEVILLE—The Chattanooga Mocs moved past VMI by a 92-72 tally to head into the quarterfinals of the Southern Conference Championships presented by Ingles. The Mocs used a dominant start and not allowing a glimmer of hope to the Keydets throughout.  The Mocs scored on their first four possessions leading for all but the 12 seconds it was 0-0. They…

EPB Working to Restore Thousands of Power Outages

UPDATE: As of 9:30 p.m. Saturday, EPB says crews continue to work to restore power to about 1,500 customers due to Friday’s severe weather. UPDATE: As of 5:30 p.m. Saturday, EPB says crews continue to work to restore power to 2,600 customers due to Friday’s severe weather. UPDATE: As of 11:30 a.m. Saturday, EPB says there are approximately 5,000 customers…

UTC Women Blast ETSU 69-40 to Advance to SoCon Title Game

(gomocs.com) ASHEVILLE—The Chattanooga Mocs roared into the championship game of the Southern Conference Championships presented by Ingles with a 69-40 win over ETSU in the Harrah’s Cherokee Center. It was a dominant performance on both ends of the floor.  Raven Thompson led the way with 23 points and 10 rebounds. The Mocs were a +36 on the scoreboard in here…

Some believe Tennessee’s “drag bill” is dangerous to LGBTQ citizens

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WDEF) — Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has signed a bill banning public performances of drag shows. Senate Bill Three was signed into law yesterday, effectively banning drag performances in public spaces. Phil Cobucci, Founder of Inclusion Tennessee believes this bill may set a dangerous tone for LGBTQ and transgender citizens of Tennessee. “This could apply to transgender performers…

Thrasher Bridge Reopened after Wires Fall on Highway

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – The Highway 153 bridge at Chickamauga Dam had to be shut down due to downed power lines falling just north of the bridge near the TVA buildings. Traffic in both directions slowed significantly as drivers were rerouted onto alternate roads. Shortly after 5 p.m. this evening, traffic was reopened in both directions as EPB was continuing…

New VW Scout plant to be built in South Carolina

Project expected to be completed in 2026, according to sources

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — According to multiple sources, Volkswagen will be building a new manufacturing plant centered around its new electric Scout model trucks and SUVs. But it will not be built in Chattanooga. According to Reuters, Volkswagen’s new Scout manufacturing plant will cost $2 billion to build and will create at least 4,000 permanent jobs in Columbia, South Carolina….

More to the Story with Staley: Booster update

Dr. Tracei Ball says we need to stay vigilant, because we're still in a pandemic.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WDEF) — In case you were wondering, most experts say we’re still in the pandemic. Even though many of us struggle to see it as an ongoing threat. Let’s face it. We’re all tired of it. Shots, sanitizers, masks: things we’ve done, and do, to stay as safe as possible during this pandemic. Dr. Tracei Ball, who founded Oncall…

Dade County storm shelters open

DADE COUNTY, Ga. (WDEF) — There is a possibility for damaging winds and tornados this afternoon. Dade County is opening up their storm shelters to anyone in the community who might need a safe place to shelter. In a Facebook post, the Dade County Emergency Management said, “ALL of our Storm Shelters are Open, Operational and FEMA approved to withstand…

From The Archives: 1992 June Jam draws fans from all over the country

We look back at the Fort Payne country music festival that is returning this year after 26 years

FORT PAYNE, Alabama (WDEF) – We still don’t know exactly who will be performing, but tickets went on sale anyway this week for the return of the June Jam. The music festival returns to Fort Payne on Saturday, June 3rd after a 26 year break. The surviving members of the group Alabama promise they will be there.  But the other…

Brainerd Beats Tyner in Overtime to Win Region Title

Chattanooga-(WDEF-TV) Brainerd knocked off rival Tyner 52-48 in overtime on Thursday to win the region championship. It was the fifth meeting of the year between the local combatents. The Panthers Dennis Lewis Junior provided the go-ahead lay-up with just under a minute to play in the OT period. Categories: Sports – Local Sports News Tags: Beats, Brainerd High School, game….

Soddy Daisy Celebrates Improbable Region Championship

What a night for the Soddy Daisy girls basketball team. They beat Signal Mountain on Wednesday to claim their first region title in 55 years. When you’re fighting for a region championship, and you score only eight points in the first half. Oof. Had to be a tough locker room at halftime. Said head coach Katie Wright:”Told them in the…

Notre Dame Advances to First Ever State Title Game

Cookeville, TN-(WDEF-TV) Notre Dame beat the Webb School 68-62 on Thursday in the state Final Four at Tennessee Tech in Cookeville. With the win the Irish advance to play in their first ever state championship game. Gaas Herman paced Notre Dame on Thursday with a game high 24 points. Irish will face Goodpasture for the state crown Saturday at 2:30…