Tyree Smith Scores 25 as East Ridge Gets 51-44 District Tourney Win Over Hurricanes

East Ridge, TN-(WDEF-TV) Tyree Smith scored nearly half of the points for East Ridge on Friday night in their district tournament match-up aginst East Hamilton. Smith finished with 25, as the Pioneers won 51-44. Categories: Sports – Local Sports News Tags: 25 points, district win, East Ridge High School, game. local sports, Highschool Basketball, Hurricanes, local sports news, scores, Tyree…

LFO Girls Beat Coahulla Creek 61-49 For Region Title

Fort Oglethorpe, GA-(WDEF-TV) The LFO girls captured their region title on Friday night, beating Coahulla Creek 61-49. Christen Collins had 19 for the Warriors while Brinkley Kate Reed had 20 points for the Colts. Categories: Sports – Local Sports News Tags: beat coahulla creek, game. local sports, Girls highschool basketball, LFO, local sports news, Region Title

New Mocs Coach Shawn Poppie Has UTC Back in First Place

Chattanooga-(WDEF-TV) What a turn-around for the UTC women’s basketball team this season. They won only seven games last year, which was the worst season in program history. Now under new head coach Shawn Poppie, the Mocs have doubled last year’s victory total…and they’re in sole possession of first place in the SoCon after their win Thursday night over Furman. The…

Food Truck Friday is back in Chattanooga

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — After one year of success, Food Truck Friday is back up and running for all Chattanoogans to enjoy. Not only do these efforts support local businesses, but they also open up a variety of different lunch cuisines. The event is hosted by Kitchen Incubator of Chattanooga on the first and third Fridays of each  month, excluding…

Tennessee Senate votes to extend Voucher bill to Hamilton County

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — The Tennessee Senate passed a bill that would expand the voucher program to be eligible in Hamilton County. The bill would allow eligible families to receive up to $8,000 taxpayer dollars to send their kids to private schools. Lawmakers voted on the bill this Thursday and it passed 19 to 6. Tennessee State Senator, Todd Gardenhire…

Unmarked, white blimp sighting in Dalton area

(Video credits to Debbie Fleming) DALTON, Ga. (WDEF) — With the increase in balloon-like objects over North America, people showed concern after seeing an unmarked blimp over the Dalton area today. From a distance, it may look similar to the Chinese balloon shot down earlier this month. However, it was only an unwrapped blimp, according to the Dalton Airport. Dalton…

Special Olympics holds annual basketball tournament

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — Almost a dozen local teams gathered Friday for the 2023 Special Olympics basketball tournament. The tournament was held at the McCallie School. Special Olympics partnered with several local schools including: Hixson High School, Signal Mountain Middle and High School, Ridgeland High School and Chattanooga Christian. They also partnered with local organizations such as Orange Grove and…

Salvation Army kicks off Flowers of Hope

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – Today the Salvation Army began their Flowers of Hope program bringing joy and hope to Chattanooga’s under served communities. The event was created by the Salvation Army’s Women’s Auxiliary. They gather each month to provide floral arrangements and notes of encouragement to those who need to be lifted up. The flowers are donated from local florists…

TECH BYTE: Hyundai, Kia Offer Theft Software Fix

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — Some Hyundais and Kias are getting a free anti-theft software upgrade. This comes after too many of them were getting stolen. After some insurance companies like State Farm said they would stop offering coverage for certain Hyundais and Kias, the car companies are now stepping in. They’re now upgrading the anti-theft software on certain models made…

UTC Women Grab Sole Possession of First Place After Beating Furman 70-63

(gomocs.com) CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Chattanooga broke out the pink Thursday night in its Breast Cancer Awareness game and came away with a 70-63 win over Furman and sole possession of first place in the Southern Conference women’s basketball standings. The Mocs hit first and hard getting out to a 10-1 lead to start the game and led wire-to-wire. UTC kept…

School board members discuss state student retention law

Hamilton County board members understand accountability behind student performance, yet view law as strict

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tenn. (WDEF) — Hamilton County school board members voted Thursday night on a resolution that would have impacted the retention of local students based on their reading abilities. Five school board members voted in favor, and three opposed, to a non-binding resolution asking the Tennessee legislature to return decisions on the retention of its students back to the…

Puppies abandoned in Bledsoe County

PIKEVILLE, Tenn. (WDEF) — Four puppies were abandoned on the side of a road in Bledsoe County. Volunteers with Maringa Animal Sanctuary picked them up, but only one pups survived. “My first reaction is not again,” said Judy LaGrone, President of Maringa Animal Sanctuary. She says she sees animal abuse cases far too often. LaGrone went on, “We need help….

School board member posts rape joke

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tenn. (WDEF) — A Hamilton County school board member is under fire, and this isn’t her first time. Rhonda Thurman is known as someone who is heavily opinionated and not afraid to let her friends on Facebook know. Recently Thurman posted a Facebook status indicating that she was not a fan of our current President, stating “Joe Biden…

Probable Cause Found to Continue Murder Case Against Jason Chen

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – Another hearing was held today for the man charged with criminal homicide in the November death of Jasmine Pace. Hamilton County Judge Larry Ables had to decide today whether or not there was enough probable cause in the case of Jason Chen to proceed forward towards a grand jury. Chen is charged with criminal homicide in…

Corrections officers stabbed while intervening in inmate attack

WARNING: Images may be graphic to viewers. HAMILTON COUNTY, Tenn. (WDEF) — An inmate at the Silverdale Detention Center stabbed two corrections officers. The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office said the officers were trying to stop an inmate-on-inmate assault. The stabbing happened Thursday morning shortly before 3:30 a.m. HCSO said a corrections officer opened a cell door to deliver medication to…

TN National Guard identifies two killed in helicopter crash

Daniel Wadham and Danny Randolph were killed in the accident

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WDEF) — The Tennessee National Guard identified the two pilots killed in Wednesday’s helicopter crash. They said the accident happened during a training flight near Highway 53 in Madison County. Those killed in the crash were Chief Warrant Officer 3 Daniel Wadham and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Danny Randolph. Wadham was from Joelton and Randolph was from Murfreesboro….

Suspect arrested in Sweetwater shooting

Liu Huerta. Courtesy: Sheriff Tommy Jones SWEETWATER, Tenn. (WDEF) — Wednesday night, Monroe County police arrested a suspect in the shooting of five people. Sheriff Tommy Jones released information regarding Huerta’s arrest. Liu Huerta faces three counts of attempted first degree murder, attempted aggravated burglary, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and the use of a firearm during a dangerous felony. Tommy…

From The Archives: 2013 Singles Awareness Day

The anti-Valentine holiday arrives in Chattanooga

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — More than 20 years ago, high school student Dustin Barnes decided that those who didn’t have a Valentine should get a special day too. So, he created Singles Awareness Day at his school. Then he took it to Mississippi State. Now, it is an unofficial holiday all over the world. For our Thursday Throwback, we take…

Report findings show strong antisemitism in American South

Local, national Jewish community leaders encourage residents to speak out against Jew-centered hate

CHATTANOOGA (WDEF) — According to a report from the American Jewish Committee, antisemitism throughout the country has been found to be the strongest here in the South. The AJC’s State of Antisemitism in America report is meant to survey the nation’s stances on antisemitism, both from Jewish and non-Jewish Americans. According to the AJC’s report, “more Jews in the South…

No survivors in Huntsville helicopter crash

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WDEF) — A Black Hawk Helicopter crashed Wednesday afternoon near Huntsville, Alabama. CBS News reports that it belonged to the Tennessee National Guard. They said there were no survivors in the crash. CBS said the crash happened around 3 p.m. central time. It happened just off Highway 53 in Madison County. This was about 10 miles northwest of…