🌱 Vacant Home Fire + TN Commissioner Stuart McWhorter Visits

Good morning, everybody! It's me, Danielle Fallon-O'Leary, your host of the Chattanooga Daily. Let's get this Friday started off right, with a quick review of the most important things going on these days in town...

First, today's weather:

Cloudy with a thunderstorm. High: 83 Low: 71.

Here are the top three stories in Chattanooga today:

1. The Chattanooga Fire Department responded to a vacant home fire on Wednesday. The incident occurred in the 1500 block of Wheeler Avenue. The department was notified of the fire when residents observed smoke emitting from the home. The department is currently investigating the fire. (WTVC)
2. Tennessee's new Department of Economic and Community Development commissioner visited Chattanooga. Commissioner Stuart McWhorter spoke about local challenges facing the state's most solid workforce. According to McWhorter, traffic at the Ridge Cut and the split of Interstates 24/25 are among the biggest challenges for local employers. He reported that the state is working on a plan to fix the issues. (WDEF News 12)
3. LearningRx Chattanooga graduate Isabel Baez has won the nationwide LearningRx Student of the Year contest. Baez received a $1,000 scholarship and the Chattanooga LearningRx location received a trophy to display. She was nominated by the program in May and received the award during a convention in Colorado Springs. (The Chattanoogan)

Today in Chattanooga:

• Chattanooga Fishing Forum Fishing Tournament At Chester Frost Park Boat Ramp (7:00 AM)
• Sale Creek Kayak Tour At Sale Creek (8:30 AM)
• Friday Community Zoom With ArtsBuild (10:30 AM)
• Chimpanzee Keeper Chat At The Tennessee Aquarium (3:00 PM)
• Nightfall At Miller Plaza (7:00 PM)

From my notebook:

• Chattanooga Roller Derby's final home game will be on Saturday, Aug. 27 at Chattanooga Convention Center. Doors open at 2:00 p.m. and the derbies start at 3:00 p.m. Click for tickets. (Chattanooga Pulse)
• The free monthly gardening class on "Reimagine Your Store-Bought Bouquet" will be on Saturday at the Hamilton County Extension office on Adamson Circle. Click to register for the class that starts at 10:00 a.m. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
• The Chattanooga Public Library is searching for volunteers. Click to fill out a volunteer application today. (Press Release Desk)

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That's it for today! See you all tomorrow for another update.

— Danielle Fallon-O'Leary

About me: Danielle Fallon-O’Leary is a senior writer with content creation agency Lightning Media Partners and assists Patch.com with community newsletter curation. Danielle also holds a Master’s Degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders and works part-time as a pediatric speech therapist.