A rural Weakley County man was killed Wednesday, December 31, in a lawnmower accident.

    According to Weakley County Sheriff’s Investigator Eric Smith, the officer was dispatched to 2242 Shades Bridge Road near Greenfield in reference to a possible death at approximately 1 p.m.

    Deputy Smith says the investigation revealed Charles Elliott, age 64, was working on his John Deere tractor lawnmower in his shed at the time of the accident.

    The report states the victim had jacked the mower up with a bumper jack and appeared to be changing the blades when the jack evidently slipped, causing the mower to fall on Elliott and trap him underneath the deck.

    The victim’s wife, Sharon, states her husband was in the shed approximately two hours before she discovered what had happened to him.

    Weakley County emergency medical technicians were called to the scene, but Elliott was described as unresponsive to medical treatment.

    As a result of the investigation, Elliott’s death was ruled accidental.

    The Greenfield native previously worked as a production supervisor at Milan Seeding Company.

    Services were held Saturday, January 3, at Williams Funeral Home in Greenfield, with burial in Mt. Pleasant Cemetery in Bradford. (See obituary for more information.)

   

    Members of the Dresden Planning Commission discussed implementing a plan of services and zoning for properties in the process of being annexed into Dresden’s city limits, during a noon meeting Monday, January 5, 2009, with Chairman Tommy Moore presiding.

    The four parcels being annexed already have access to all city services.  These parcels are:

• Tax Map 102, Parcel 49.02

• Tax Map 102 G, Group B, Parcel 22.01

• Tax Map 102 G, Group B, Parcel 25.01

• Tax Map 102 G, Group C, Parcel 11.01

    The annexation of these properties was approved on first reading during the December 1, 2008 meeting of the Dresden board.

    The annexation ordinance outlines the areas to be annexed as follows:

    “Area 1 (Gaylord Road Area) – Water is available in the entire area.  The sewer line stops at Thomas Street, which is the end of the current city limits.  The recommendation for this area is to annex only the areas that currently lie just outside the city limits but have access to both city water and city sewer.  Some of these properties would include Judge Bradberry (Parkway Street), Dr. Glisson (120 Woodside Circle) and Sam Bone (118 Woodside Circle). 

    Therefore, this would leave Gaylord Road, Darnell Lane, Cherokee Lane and Post Oak Cove untouched.

    With the newly proposed areas (Parkway and Woodside Circle) already having city water and city sewer available to them, there would be no cost to the city.”

    During discussion, it was noted a portion of a tract owned by Jacqueline Glisson had not been included in the annexation plan, and commission members agreed the wedge-shaped area should be added.

    Dresden Mayor Danny Forrester made a motion to approve the proposed annexation as presented, which was seconded by Alderman Richard Tidwell. Aldermen Tidwell then made a motion to amend the original motion to include the wedge-shaped area in the area to be annexed. Forrester seconded the motion. Upon voice vote, the proposed amendment was unanimously approved, and a vote upon the original motion as amended was also unanimously approved.

(Read the rest of this story in the January 7th print edition of the Dresden Enterprise.)

  

    A Weakley County woman was airlifted and a small child was transported by ambulance following a single-vehicle accident Tuesday, December 30, 2008 approximately 0.4 miles north of Latham.

    According to Trooper Andy Forsythe of the Tennessee Highway Patrol, at approximately 2:15 p.m., 27-year-old Rebecca Louise Boulton of 640 Red Hill Road, Dresden, was traveling south on Highway 118 in her 1993 Isuzu Rodeo when for an undetermined reason, she crossed the center line and drove off the left side of the road, striking a 55 m.p.h. speed sign post. The vehicle then traveled down an embankment and crashed through heavy underbrush and saplings, but fortunately, avoided a head on collision with one of several large trees in the area. The Isuzu came to a halt in an upright position some 250 feet from where it left the roadway, which was approximately 100 feet north of Carney Road.

    Members of the Weakley County Ambulance Service and Weakley County Rescue Squad treated the victim at the scene. Trooper Forsythe stated Boulton did not appear to have any serious injuries and was listed in stable condition. The victim was airlifted to Jackson-Madison County General Hospital where she was kept overnight for observation.

    However, she apparently struck her head in the crash and was unable to communicate the circumstances of the accident to Trooper Forsythe or Weakley County Sheriff’s deputies at the scene.

    Three-year-old Charli Cheyenne Jones, who was passenger in the vehicle, was strapped into her child restraint device and was not seriously injured in the crash. The child was transported to Volunteer Community Hospital in Martin where she was treated and released.

 

(Read the rest of this story in the January 7th print edition of the Dresden Enterprise.)