Southern Middle TN Today News with Tom Price 5-9-25

WKOM/WKRM Radio

Southern Middle Tennessee Today

News Copy for May 9, 2025

All news stories are aggregated from various sources and modified for time and content. Original sources are cited.

We start with local news…

City of Columbia Seeks Help with Arson Investigation (Press Release)

The City of Columbia is requesting the public’s help in identifying those responsible for an act of arson that occurred on April 16, 2025, at New Life Ministries of Columbia, located at 317 East 18th Street.

Following a thorough investigation, Special Agent Fire Investigators with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI), working in coordination with Columbia Fire & Rescue and the Columbia Police Department, have determined the fire was intentionally set.

The TBI is now seeking information from the public to assist in identifying the individual(s) responsible for this criminal act. Anyone with knowledge about this incident is encouraged to contact the Tennessee Arson Hotline at 1-800-762-3017.

Calls to the hotline can remain anonymous. Individuals who provide information leading to an arrest may be eligible for a cash reward of up to $5,000.

“This act of arson is not only a crime against property but also an attack on a place of worship and community gathering,” said Columbia Fire Chief Chris Cummins. “We urge anyone with information to come forward so we can ensure justice is served and continue to protect the safety and well-being of our residents.”

The City of Columbia values the partnership and coordinated efforts of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Columbia Fire & Rescue, and the Columbia Police Department in investigating this incident, and remains committed to supporting all efforts to bring those responsible to justice.

County Remembers Tornado One Year Later (CDH)

On May 8, 2024, Columbia was under a severe emergency as an EF-3 tornado swept through areas east of U.S. 31 along Bear Creek Pike, damaging 245 structures and claiming one life.

It happened in a matter of minutes, but the devastation is still felt one year later as the community continues to put the pieces back together, just like John and Valerie Bernhardt, whose home was destroyed in a moment.

One area which experienced significant damage, including a partially collapsed electrical tower, was just a few miles off Bear Creek Pike along Blackburn Lane.

As the tornado swept down the street, John and Valerie Bernhardt hunkered down in their laundry room as the tornado struck their house, tearing the roof off and uprooting trees around the property.

Physically they were unscathed, but devastation was left around them.

"You could look up and see the storm all around the house, and how many people can say they've looked up and seen through a tornado? It was a strange thing to see," John said, sitting in the couple's house now rebuilt as it once stood.

"I still haven't figured out the sound, but while we were sitting there it was like it was crunching, like something was chewing the house up. It was like being in a big grinder with all the debris flying everywhere."

Recovery from the May 8 storms hasn't been easy, but the journey has led to a good place, John said. This has been thanks to the help of volunteers, church friends and others who have pitched in to help, whether it was picking up bricks, reconstructing the house or simply offering prayers of hope.

"The first few weeks we were kind of in a daze, but the important thing was we lived through it," he said. "I feel blessed about the whole thing, which you wouldn't think after going through all of this, but you realize how many people are there for you. You just really notice it."

After staying with family to eight months of apartment living and rebuilding a lot more than just a house, the couple was able to move back home just before Christmas, with nearly everything as it once stood. This was partly thanks to the original's foundation remaining intact, John said.

"We just had to see if it was doable and just took it one day at a time after that," John said. "We downsized without really meaning to, but you sit down and say 'I need to get rid of a lot of junk.' Well, this kind of took the procrastinating out of it."

While the house was able to be rebuilt, there are still fallen trees, brush and other remnants of that night, much of which will likely never be replaced.

"I'm retired now, and my hobby was going to be taking care of the woods, making trails out there, but now my hobby is cleaning up after a tornado," John said. "I look out back and just shake my head because I don't recognize the place. That's been the hardest part for us."

Though retirement hasn't been quite what he expected, John said the experience has been a blessing.

"A lot of things really helped in a way now that it's over with," John said. "I wouldn't want to go through it again, but right now I'm in a good place. It's a good place."

As recovery efforts were starting in the following days, Gov. Bill Lee visited Maury County to assess the damages and how the state would respond.

Lee, who returned to Columbia on Wednesday, recalled that time one year ago, and how the May 8 tornado, along with Hurricane Helene later that same year, inspired the State to step up its response to these types of disastrous events.

"We have had a lot of storms across the state in the last year, but that one was devastating to this community," Lee told the Daily Herald. "In fact, it informed our newest approach to disasters across the state that hit communities in every area."

In April, applications opened for the Governor's Response and Recovery Fund (GRRF) in partnership with the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA), a $100 million initiative established to provide flexible financial assistance for current and future unmet disaster recovery needs.

"That was created by the General Assembly to address unique disasters that are not large enough for FEMA funding, but still need help from their community," Lee said. "This was devastating for the community, but it, along with other disasters spurred a response that's more helpful to communities than we've had in the past."

In the aftermath, part of the recovery was an effort by local leaders and emergency responders to develop stronger and more effective emergency response efforts if this were to ever happen again.

In September, the city applied for a $420,000 grant through the South Central Tennessee Development District's 2024 Community Development Block Grant Imminent Threat Program. This funding was to install 12 new emergency warning sirens, which was later approved in December.

Columbia Fire Chief Chris Cummins said the new siren system is still a few months from being operational, but it is a project intended to grow over time. Part of the holdup, he said, is due to an archeological survey required at one of the locations."

"There was some Civil War significance there, and anytime you deal with that you have to do a survey to make sure you won't cause any disturbance there," Cummins said. "We should be wrapping up with that, hopefully, within the next 30 days if they say we are good to go on that, and then we are looking at five or six months to having those sirens installed and running tests."

The new siren system will also include the ability to perform routine, not to mention noiseless, testing.

"In the future we are going to continue to build into the budget where we can continually build out, add however many new sirens per year and maintain the ones we are getting on the start," Cummins said. "This is the start of a bigger program and will be a good thing for our citizens here."

Crews have also been actively working to remove much of the brush debris, which Cummins said has been a long process just to get started but has gained momentum over the last couple of months.

"That took a long time to facilitate because there are so many permits you have to work through in that aspect to meet the guidelines of the EPA and TDEC," Cummins said. "But they have worked on a lot of runoffs at Bear Creek Pike, gotten most of that cleaned up and are working in other areas."

Columbia Mayor Chaz Molder said the tornado created new opportunities to provide a stronger response service to citizens.

"There was an incredible amount of coordination and collaboration that we saw between our emergency responders and emergency management teams during this tornadic event," Molder said. "That has actually led into a mutual aid agreement with Maury County Fire, which was one of many silver linings.

"The other thing I will always take away is the community outreach. We really saw the best of community shine during a very difficult time for many in our community, which included a loss of life."

Caring Hearts Home Healthcare (WKOM Audio 1:38)

Yesterday, Caring Hearts Home Healthcare held a ribbon cutting marking their 20th anniversary. At the event was Front Porch Radio’s Delk Kennedy who spoke to Caring Hearts proprietor Kelly Dodson…

Governor Visits Columbia Businesses (CDH)

Gov. Bill Lee visited numerous Columbia businesses Wednesday to speak with business owners and local entrepreneurs in honor of Small Business Appreciation Week, calling them the "the backbone of our economy."

Lee joined locally elected officials, including Maury County Mayor Sheila Butt, Sen. Joey Hensley, R-Hohenwald and Rep. Scott Cepicky, R-Culleoka, during his visit and press tour during the annual small business event.

"This is an exciting day in Maury County because we have the governor here celebrating Small Business Week, and small businesses make up 85% of the backbone of our economy," Butt said.

"It is something the governor has always been concerned with helping, and I'm also thrilled because he has taken on a Duck River project with his Duck River water planning partnership, which he intends to help us find the future of water in Maury County."

Lee simply said, "There was no better place" to choose to celebrate Small Business Week than Columbia in Maury County, one of the fastest growing counties in Tennessee, and dubbed the fastest growing in the 2020 U.S. Census.

"It's an iconic town with iconic businesses, and as I tell people all the time if you live anywhere in America and want to mark a small town off your bucket list, you come to Tennessee," Lee said. "Small business is the backbone, and there is no better place to do it than Columbia."

Lee's stops included longtime downtown Columbia businesses, such as Caledonian Financial started by founder Monty Sneed, Bleu 32 Vintage Marketplace, Columbia Health Foods, Ted's Sporting Goods, McEwen Group LLC and flagship Puckett's Restaurant started by Andy Marshall.

"It means a lot to us for them to choose to come see what we are doing here in downtown Columbia," Columbia Health Foods owner Jackie Davis said.

In addition to the growth in small businesses, Lee addressed the Columbia and Maury County community's growing need for water resources.

In November, Lee signed the Pastoral River II bill, aiming to protect the Duck River, which supplies water to approximately 250,000 Tennesseans across Maury County.

Lee later earmarked $100 million in a 2025 proposal to create a regional water supply strategy, of which $65 million was approved by the Tennessee General Assembly in April.

"This community is thriving, which is evident when you look out there, and they need more water and the Duck River needs more water too," Lee said. "We are just starting to kind of lay the groundwork for the next 10, 15 to 20 years. I think this is a big step forward."

Dan McEwen, owner of McEwen Group LLC in downtown Columbia, also praised the governor for his push and support of the Tennessee Farmland Preservation Act, which passed recently in the 114th General Assembly. 

"We are so grateful for your work," McEwen told Lee. "We are all about conservation here, and Maury County has experienced a lot of growth.”

McEwen also advocated for the passage of the Pastoral River II bill in 2024.

As an advocate for farmland preservation, Lee's preservation bill will create a $25 million grant program for farmers who volunteer to preserve their land in an effort to lessen the trend of land loss across the state by giving landowners incentives.

"I think that too, while it's not the answer, it's a small piece of the answer," Lee said.

"I went around the state the last year or two saying I don't know how many times to how many groups, saying 'We lose 10 acres an hour, of farmland, to development' and people have no idea that is the case.

"When they hear that, they may or not fully understand a piece of legislation, but I need Tennesseans to understand and be aware we lose 10 acres of land an hour, and yet ag is our biggest industry, and growth is something we want.

"So how do you get all of it and how do you do both?"

Spring Hill Opens New Police Station (MauryCountySource)

The Spring Hill Police Department has officially relocated its operations to a newly constructed headquarters at 800 Hathaway Boulevard in Spring Hill, Tennessee.

Located off Port Royal Road, the facility can be accessed by turning onto Old Port Royal Road at the intersection between Walgreens and McDonald’s, then continuing to Hathaway Boulevard.

The new headquarters represents a major investment in public safety infrastructure. In 2023, the Spring Hill Board of Mayor and Aldermen (BOMA) approved a $37.5 million contract with Hensel Phelps Construction Company to build the new police facility. The 60,000-square-foot building provides expanded space and updated resources for law enforcement personnel.

As always, residents should dial 911 for emergencies. For non-emergency matters, the department can be reached at (931) 486-2632.

To view the full timeline of this project and others, visit www.springhilltn.org.

New FNP Joins MRMC (Press Release)

Makenzi Boyle, FNP, is a family nurse practitioner who has joined the hospital medicine program at Maury Regional Medical Center. She is affiliated with the Maury Regional Medical Group.

Boyle received her bachelor’s degree in nursing at the University of North Alabama in Florence, Alabama. She obtained her master’s certification in family nurse practitioner studies from the University of Alabama in Huntsville, Alabama.

Maury Regional Medical Group, an affiliate of Maury Regional Health, provides Maury Regional’s hospital medicine program professionals. These providers are specialists who devote their time and expertise to adult and pediatric patients exclusively within the hospital setting.

Rev War Traveling Exhibit (Press Release)

The Tenassee Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution is sponsoring “The American Revolution Experience Traveling Exhibition,” an innovative pop-up exhibition includes display panels and interactive digital kiosks that use storytelling, illustration, technology and unique artifacts and primary accounts to connect modern audiences with the people and places that shaped the birth of our nation

Curated by the American Battlefield Trust, the exhibition will be on display from May 16 - 25, at the Maury County Public Library located at 211 West 8th Street in Columbia

The exhibit hours are Monday - Wednesday: 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and Thursday - Saturday: 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Historic Marker Unveiling (Press Release)

The community is invited to attend an unveiling ceremony for historical markers honoring the Memorial Building and Viscaya naval gun.

The event will take place on Thursday, May 22, 2025 at 3:30 PM at the Memorial Building, 308 W 7th Street, Columbia, TN

Constructed in 1909 as Columbia’s original Post Office, the Memorial Building has played a vital role in the city’s civic and cultural life for over a century. It has served as a public library, Chamber of Commerce, and home to veteran services and other local organizations. Its legacy as a public gathering space continues today.

The site also features a 14 cm Hontoria quickfire gun from the Spanish cruiser Viscaya, which sank during the Battle of Santiago in the Spanish-American War. This rare artifact is one of only eight such guns that were aboard the ship. It has been displayed in numerous locations around Columbia.

And now, Your Hometown Memorials, Sponsored by Oakes & Nichols Funeral Home…

Mildred Hartsfield, 92, a longtime resident of Columbia and an artist of note, died Friday, May 2, 2025 at the Goldton Assisted Living and Memory Care in Spring Hill.

A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date.

And now, news from around the state…

Nova Can Be Seen in TN (Tennessean)

Another "once-in-a-lifetime" celestial event is coming, but don't worry, it's happening 3,000 light years away. And we get to witness it in the Tennessee night sky.

A nova explosion in the binary star system T Coronae Borealis is predicted to happen in May 2025, which people across the United States are expected to be able to see. Scientists first alerted the public about this celestial phenomenon in June 2024. After months of hearing the binary star system could go nova "any day now," the explosion never came. But now is the time, according to NASA scientists.

And the view from the Earth is expected to be pretty spectacular.

The highly anticipated nova in the T Coronae Borealis system isn't exactly on a specific timeline. With the system being thousands of light years away, scientists believe that the light projected from the explosion will finally make its way to Earth in the next few months, according to NASA.

T Coronae Borealis can be seen in a horseshoe-shaped constellation called Corona Borealis, or the "Northern Crown".

NASA encourages sky watchers to practice finding the constellation Corona Borealis in the eastern part of the sky during the first half of the night between Hercules and Bootes, so that people can have a point of comparison when the nova appears.

You can also find it with the two brightest stars in the Northern Hemisphere – Arcturus and Vega. It should be between the two of those with the Big Dipper handle pointing the way, according to The Planetary Society.

In the T Coronae Borealis system, there is a red giant star with a smaller white dwarf star orbiting closely around it. The dwarf star is close enough to the puffed-up giant that the dwarf takes on some of the giant's hydrogens. When it accumulates enough, it explodes.

"About every 80 years, the white dwarf has accumulated so much of the other star’s hydrogen, that it ignites a thermonuclear explosion. And that’s the nova," read NASA's explanation of the phenomenon.

People across Tennessee should be able to see it with the naked eye once it happens.

Usually, T Coronae Borealis is very faint and people need a telescope to spot it in the night sky, but the explosion caused by the nova is expected to be so massive, spectators should be able to look up and see it with the naked eye.

Final Story of the Day (Maury County Source)

Columbia and Maury County have quite a few options to celebrate the woman who gave you life this Mother's Day weekend.

Baxter's Mercantile, 808 S. Garden St., will host Mother's Day Tea starting at 10 a.m. Saturday. The first 25 mothers will receive a special gift, with other opportunities for door prizes and shopping, as well as Rocky's Ice Cream Soda Fountain.

Nashville Tea Co will present Mother's Day Afternoon Tea on May 11, offering an experience of elegant tea at its location at the Factory at Columbia. The Afternoon Tea is served across two seating times on one day only at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Choose from a collection of loose-leaf teas and finger sandwiches, freshly baked scones and artisan pastries. Cost per person is $55 adults, $35 children under age 10. 

Create a custom fit forever bracelet with Mom at Advanced Skin & Body Solutions, 807 Nashville Highway, for its special Mother's Day Permanent Jewelry Event from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. For $85, create custom bracelets or anklets for two.