About a dozen houses in the Watt Street neighborhood were evacuated on Tuesday afternoon during a tense standoff in Alcoa.
"The only thing I can think of is 'I gotta leave the premises, what's
happening?,' " Alcoa resident Pierre Cummings said. His house is across the street from the home where Michael Pidgeon, 56, barricaded himself inside his home with a
weapon.
"I'm getting a drink of water, and he put a gun to my head and said 'I'm
gonna blow your head off,'" Pidgeon's wife, Keri Edwards commented. She said it stemmed from an argument over her car.
The Blount County SWAT team was brought in to assist the Alcoa Police Department as they tactfully tried to get Pidgeon to leave the house peacefully.
After three hours of waiting, negotiating and preparing to make a
forced entrance into the home, Pidgeon cooperated with officials and
left the home with no problems.
"They went in, they made entry, they located him in the rear bedroom
and apprehended him without incident," Alcoa Police Officer Holly
Hatcher said on Thursday.
Pidgeon was taken to the Blount County Jail. He faces multiple charges, including some that remained from earlier warrants.
Neighbors, now back in their homes, are glad no one was hurt.
"Some people... I just don't know about people," Cummings added.
Previous Story: "Suspect in custody after Blount Co. standoff"
Blount County police say a suspect is in custody after a standoff in Alcoa.
Officers say the man had warrants out for his arrest. He had a weapon at the time of the standoff.
They say the situation happened near the intersection of W. Watt Street and N. Hall Road.
As a precautionary measure during the incident, W. Watt Street was closed and the houses on the street were evacuated, but residents are now permitted to re-enter their homes.
Police believe the incident started as a domestic situation.
The suspect was found in a downstairs bedroom.
No one was injured.