Driver escapes horrific accident with relatively minor injuries
Plus: Scott High honors homicide victim April Duncan before football game, unemployment rate settles back to 4.2%
Good Monday morning! Welcome to a brand new week. This is The Daybreaker, the first of several newsletters that will be published this week by the Independent Herald. The Daybreaker (Monday) and The Weekender (Thursday evening) are our two news-first newsletters. We publish several other newsletters throughout the week, as well as our regular E-Edition on Thursday and our Varsity E-Edition on Sunday (during sports season). If you’d like to adjust your subscription to include (or exclude) this or any of our other newsletters, please do so here. If you need to subscribe, it’s as simple as entering your email address:
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Driver’s survival story called inspiring testimony
A Friday evening accident on Baker Highway in east Huntsville snarled traffic and caused many passersby to doubt that anyone could have survived after a pickup truck was literally ripped in half and its driver ejected from the vehicle. But, in fact, he survived with relatively minor injuries, and his story is being called an inspiring testimony. Following is a post made on Facebook by Miranda Lorrain, which was shared hundreds of times:
“I didn’t want to make this post but this is a testimony - Kendrick was rear ended, ejected from his truck and landed in the road. The impact was so hard his boots flew off of his feet. A first responding citizen told me as they rolled him over they immediately noticed the cross around his neck and knew. Kendrick survived this crash and was saved on his way to UT. He was released with a fractured collarbone, fractured vertebrae & a concussion. If you’ve never believed in Jesus look at this truck. I’m so thankful my son still has his daddy.”
The driver of the other vehicle involved in the accident also escaped serious injury. The accident was investigated by the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
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Slain law enforcement officer honored by Scott High School
April Reynolds Duncan, the Scott County Sheriff’s Office deputy who was murdered in January 2022, was honored by Scott High School prior to the start of Friday’s football game against Cumberland Gap. Members of Duncan’s family were invited onto the field at Highlander Stadium prior to the start of the game for a presentation and a moment of silence in her memory. Afterwards, they served as honorary captains for the coin toss to start the game, along with military veterans who were also honored.
The ceremony was part of military and first responders appreciation night at Highlander Stadium, as Scott High defeated Cumberland Gap 50-16.
Duncan was killed at her home on Jan. 31, 2022. She was a mother of three: Caden, Kadence and Carley.
Her death was initially rumored to be suicide. However, her husband — Tommy Duncan, also a law enforcement officer — was later indicted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and charged with her murder. He has not been tried in connection with her death, but is serving a 40-year sentence for rape and continuous sex abuse of a child that will not end until April 3, 2063. He’s housed at South Central Correctional Center in Clifton, Tenn.
Scott County unemployment rate drops to 4.2%
After its typical summer spike, Scott County’s unemployment rate has settled back to 4.2%, according to the latest figures from the TN Dept. of Labor & Workforce Development.
The local jobless rate dropped from 5.4% in July to 4.2% in August, a healthy drop that followed a statewide trend. All 95 counties posted decreased jobless rates in August.
Scott County’s current unemployment rate is based on an estimated work force of 8,985 people, of which 8,612 are employed and 373 are unemployed.
The jobless rate remains higher than the all-time record low of 3.1% seen in April, but is still healthy from a year-over-year perspective. The local unemployment rate was 4.6% in August 2024 and 4.8% in August 2023. The number of working Scott Countians remains substantially higher than it was a year ago. In August 2024, the state estimated that 7,822 Scott Countians were gainfully employed. In August 2025, that number stood at 8,612. The number of working Scott Countians hit a high of 8,662 in April.
Among neighboring Tennessee counties, Anderson County saw an eight-tenths of a percentage point drop to 3.4%, Campbell County was down the same amount to 3.5%, and Fentress County was down 1.1 points to 3.6%. Morgan County’s unemployment rate fell the same amount as Fentress’s, to 4.0%, and Pickett County’s dropped 1.5 percentage points to 4.5%.
Among the state’s major metropolitan areas, Nashville’s unemployment rate is 3.0%, followed by Knoxville at 3.2%, Chattanooga at 3.4%, and Memphis at 4.6%.
The state’s lowest unemployment rate in August was found in Sevier County, at 2.7%. Also making the list of 10 lowest unemployment rates was Blount County, tied for No. 4 at 3.0%. The emergence of those two tourism-heavy counties on the state’s list of lowest unemployment rates is a reflection of the ongoing tourism season and seasonal employment.
Other counties on the list of 10 lowest unemployment rates included Cheatham County at 2.8%, followed by Williamson County at 2.9%, and Macon, Cannon, Dickson, Sumner, Wilson and Rutherford counties at 3.0%.
The state’s highest unemployment rate is found in Perry County, at 5.4%, followed by Hardeman, Lauderdale and Meigs counties at 5.1%, and Johnson County at 5.0%. Also on the list of 10 highest unemployment rates are Greene and Lake counties at 4.8%, Shelby and Benton counties at 4.7%, and Pickett County at 4.5%.
ICYMI
Season #2, Edition #6 of Varsity, the Sports Magazine of the Independent Herald, was published yesterday and is available here.
The Week Ahead
☀️ Weather: A dry, warm week is in store for us, with temperatures starting in the 80s and settling back into the mid 70s by the end of the week. Check out our daily Eye to the Sky updates on our Facebook page — published each morning at 7 a.m. on the dot — or always available at indherald.com.
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📅 Community Calendar
Monday: The Scott Appalachian Industries Senior Center in Huntsville will offer its walking program, puzzles and games, and massage chairs from 8:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. today and every weekday this week. Congregate meals are also available on-site at 12 p.m. each day, and are free to seniors ages 60 and over. You’re asked to call ahead, 423-663-9300.
Monday: Ridgeview Behavioral Health Services’ Mobile Health Clinic will be in the Walmart parking lot in Oneida from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., offering integrated primary care and behavioral health. No insurance is not a problem. Call (866) 599-0466 for more information.
Monday: The Scott County Senior Citizens Center (Main Street, Oneida) will serve lunch from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. The cost is $7 for dine-in or carry-out. Phone: (423) 569-5972.
Monday: The Round Table will air live on the IH Sports Network at 6 p.m. Special guests include Jaigen Morgan, Hayden Mason, Grady Keeton, Brylan Strunk, Reece Lamb, Lexi Marcum, Calli Strunk, Aleeyah Jeffers, Mariella Meegan, Ashley Guzman, Liriel Blevins and Ava Claire Byrd.
Tuesday: The Scott County Senior Citizens Center (Main Street, Oneida) will host exercise from 10 a.m. until 11 a.m.
Tuesday: Pinnacle Resource Center’s food pantry (1513 Jeffers Road, Huntsville) will be open beginning at 10 a.m. There are no income guidelines; however, a photo ID and a piece of mail with a Scott County address are required.
Tuesday: Boy Scout Troop #333 will meet at the Oneida War Memorial Building on Alberta Street in Oneida beginning at 6 p.m.
Tuesday: Wall Builders will meet from 7 p.m. until 9 p.m. at Trinity Baptist Church (1611 Glass House Road, Helenwood) for those struggling with addiction or striving to keep off drugs. There will be preaching, teaching, food, fellowship and personal counseling.
Wednesday: The Scott County Senior Citizens Center (Main Street, Oneida) will serve lunch from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. The cost is $7 for dine-in or carry-out.
Thursday: The Gerry McDonald Mission House, located on Church Avenue, directly behind First United Methodist Church, is open from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. You are eligible to receive food once per month. For more information or requirements, call the church office at 569-8828.
Thursday: The Scott County Senior Citizens Center (Main Street, Oneida) will host exercise from 10 a.m. until 11 a.m.
Thursday: The Oneida Special School District Board of Education will meet in regular session at 6 p.m. at the Central Office Training Center.
The Community Calendar is presented by Citizens Gas Utility District. You can help prevent pipeline damage and leaks by calling 811 before doing any excavating or demolition and submitting a utility locate request. Visit citizensgastn.com.
Thank you for reading. Our next newsletter will be Echoes in Time tomorrow. If you’d like to update your subscription to add or subtract any of our newsletters, do so here. If you haven’t yet subscribed, it’s as simple as adding your email address!
◼️ Monday morning: The Daybreaker (news & the week ahead)
◼️ Tuesday: Echoes in Time (stories of our history)
◼️ Wednesday: Threads of Life (obituaries)
◼️ Thursday evening: The Weekender (news & the weekend)
◼️ Friday: Friday Features (beyond the news)
◼️ Sunday: Varsity (a weekly sports recap)