OAK RIDGE, Tenn. (March 31, 2023) – Operations knocked offline due to a malware attack at the City of Oak Ridge will gradually return in the coming weeks.

“Despite the attack, the services our citizens rely on every day, from Police and Fire emergency services to clean water and electricity, were not interrupted,” Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson said.

A temporary webpage at the City’s website, OakRidgeTN.gov, has been created and lists the phone numbers of all City services and departments.

Specialists were brought in immediately to help with our response and recovery efforts, and over the past week, they have worked tirelessly, side-by-side with City staff, to clean and restore systems.

At this time, there is no evidence that any credit card information or taxpayer or utility customer information was compromised.

One area where nearly everyone will see an impact is utility billing.

“We are unable to send utility bills to customers right now and next month, many will end up receiving a bill that includes two months of service as we catch up,” said Deputy City Manager Jack Suggs. “We know this will disrupt our customers’ budgets and we will work with our customers to limit the burden, waiving fees and penalties and offering to spread the utility payments out over several months if needed.”

If a resident would like to make a payment toward their bill, the Utility Business Office (UBO) is open and accepting cash and check payments. Customers can also leave check payments in the drop box outside the Utility Business Office (UBO) at 200 South Tulane Avenue, Oak Ridge. The UBO can be reached at (865) 425-3400.

Residents are encouraged to reach out to the City via our website, OakRidgeTN.gov. In addition to a list of contact phone numbers, the site also includes City news, service updates, and meeting information. If a resident needs information that isn’t on the page, they can chat with the City at the bottom right corner of the page by clicking ‘Let’s Chat!’.

Fully restoring normal operations will be a slow process and could take several weeks. Customers are asked to be patient as services such as email and online permitting are restored slowly over the next few weeks.

The City of Oak Ridge is on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at @CityofOakRidge. Residents can find us on the Nextdoor app and anyone can subscribe to our e-newsletter at https://bit.ly/ORTNnewsletter or OakRidgeTN.gov.

Additional information will be shared as it becomes available.