Northshore tenant concerned about apartment structural problems

“Given what we’re noticing, it shouldn’t be happening this quickly at such a new building.” Christa Norris is concerned about the apartment building where she lives in Northshore, after noticing several cracks, rusting and water damage. “I started noticing a few cracks in my apartment but also things like the wiring not working and then from there it began escalating…

Hamilton County health officials weight in on delta variant

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – With the Delta variant quickly sweeping the globe, Hamilton County health officials are concerned. “We’ve been a little more tolerant of letting things get bad before we intervene, and I suspect that that’s the way that this will go,” says Dr. Jay Sizemore, Medical Director of Infection Prevention at Erlanger. Although more of the country is…

Protests and the Pandemic Affect Local Police Recruitment

CHATTANOOGA (WDEF) – A year after racial justice protests and calls for police defunding across the country, some local police departments feel the negative effects of attracting and retaining police officers. “Because of the anti-police rhetoric that has been infiltrated, through our media as well, it causes people who watch that and listen to that to decide, no, I don’t…

Smokies Get Two Homers to Down Lookouts 5-2

(lookouts.com) The Chattanooga Lookouts jumped out to a 2-0 lead but surrendered five unanswered runs to fall 5-2 to the Tennessee Smokies. With two outs in the first inning, Lorenzo Cedrola and Wilson Garcia hit back-to-back singles to put two men on for the red-hot T.J. Hopkins. Hopkins proceeded to belt a two-run double to plate Cedrola and Garcia. Tennessee…

Mocs Malachi Smith and David Jean Baptiste Enjoyed NBA Draft Process

Chattanooga-(WDEF-TV) The Mocs basketball team announced this week that guards Malachi Smith and David Jean Baptiste will return to the team next season. Both players went through the NBA draft process and elected to come back to college. The SoCon veterans explain what testing the NBA waters was like. Going through the NBA draft process, you get plenty of feedback…

Rep. Hakeem criticizes closed door hearing on Baptiste license

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) – A Tennessee administrative law judge has denied public access to an informal hearing regarding the license suspension of a shelter for immigrant children after one of the employees was arrested following abuse allegations. The Times Free Press reports that Judge Phillip R. Hilliard handed down his decision on Wednesday over objections from attorneys representing Baptiste Group….

Bradley County Grant to Fund Free WIFI Spots

Bradley County has been approved for a grant to bring free internet access to their county. The fifty thousand dollar grant will fund free WiFi to all Bradley County schools and a handful of fire halls. The Bradley County Mayor’s Office says rural parts of the county have trouble getting high speed internet. This grant provided by the Tennessee Department…

Aztec Framing owner pleads guilty to recruiting illegal foreign workers

ROME, Georgia (WDEF) – A Georgia businessman who had operations in our area has pleaded guilty to harboring illegal aliens. Juan Antonio Perez lives in Bartow County. But he owns Aztec Framing that had offices in Rossville and Hixson. Those offices were raided in 2019 as part of the investigation. Investigators say he recruited, hid and hired illegal workers from…

Weather in the Classroom Visits Copper Basin Elementary

Weather in the Classroom had its first in – person class today since the pandemic. Meteorologist Bekah Birdsall traveled to Copper Basin Elementary School in Polk County today. The students have been learning about robots, space, and now the weather in their summer program. Bekah showed them videos on severe weather, weather safety, and experiments they can try at home….

“Chatt En Route” Design Challenge

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn (WDEF) – Carta is working to improve the everyday experience of Chattanooga’s en route transit stops.  Two local multidisciplinary design teams have been asked to develop fresh concepts for bus stops in Chattanooga through a new design challenge: CHATT EN ROUTE. Both design teams presented two very different state of the art transit stops that could better serve the…

Colon Cancer rates in TN rank higher than national average.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn (WDEF) – It’s a growing health issue. Doctors across the country are diagnosing more and more people with colon cancer. In fact, colon cancer is now ranked in the top 5 for most common cancer in men ——and women.  The US preventative task force now suggests colon cancer screenings should  start at a younger age than first advised. “The…

CFC Get Two Second Half Goals to Beat Bigfoot Appalachian FC 3-2

Chattanooga-(WDEF-TV) The CFC were too big for Bigfoot. Chattanooga scored twice in the second half to rally for a 3-2 win over Applachian FC, whose mascot is Sasquatch. Appalachian scored the first two goals of the match to go up 2-0. Markus Naglestad had Chattanooga’s only goal of the first half as CFC trailed 2-1 at halftime. Naglestad added another…

Chattanooga Tourism Company Reacts to Out of State Residents Receiving Vouchers

CHATTANOOGA (WDEF) – Tourism is Tennessee’s second largest industry and 2020 hit the Volunteer State hard. “Last year was devastating,” says Chattanooga Tourism Company President and CEO Barry White. “We felt it very hard and the largest cities in the state were hit the hardest.” 2020 came after a record-breaking year for travel to Chattanooga. “We’re looking back at 2019…

DA’s office warns residents of Identity Theft after TN woman arrested

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn (WDEF) – The Hamilton County District Attorney’s office is warning residents to be cautious to prevent identity theft after a middle Tennessee woman was arrested last week by the Tennessee Highway Patrol. Jenniefer Shrum, was arrested back in March of 2018 by East Ridge Police and charged with 17 counts of identity theft. Officials say Shrum used the name…

Summerville’s Brody Malone Headed to the Olympics on U.S. Gymnastics Team

The U.S. Men’s Gymnastics team is on a mission for its first team medal since 2008. Leading the charge for Team USA is Summerville’s own Brody Malone. News 12’s Angela Moryan has Malone’s incredible story of heartbreak and hard work — in this News 12 exclusive. Said Malone: “It was just…. it’s hard to describe the feeling, honestly. It’s just…