• What's Up Columbia!
  • Posts
  • Maury County First Responder Facing Long Recovery After Serious ATV Accident

Maury County First Responder Facing Long Recovery After Serious ATV Accident

Issue #800

August 24, 2026

In this What’s Up Columbia issue…

☀️ Columbia’s Tuesday Weather - Sunny w/ high of 88, low of 65

📰 Maury County First Responder Facing Long Recovery After Serious ATV Accident

👉 Eat, Drink and Support aMuse’um at Annual Food Truck Festival

🗓 List of Upcoming Events

🎵 This Week’s Live Music

🗓 Know of Some Local Events Not Listed? Send us the Details!

Maury County First Responder Facing Long Recovery After Serious ATV Accident

Photo from the Gofundme page for James Lee Pugs Johnson

A longtime Maury County public servant is facing a difficult recovery after being severely injured in an ATV accident last week in East Tennessee.

James Lee Johnson, known to many as "Pugs," was airlifted to a hospital following the accident and underwent emergency surgery to repair a ruptured aorta. According to a GoFundMe fundraiser organized for his family, he is also recovering from a torn spleen, multiple broken ribs, blood clots and other serious injuries.

Johnson has spent much of his life serving the Maury County community. He has worked in police, fire and EMS, served as a volunteer firefighter and EMT, and currently works as a sheriff's deputy.

The Maury County Fire Department is now asking the community to rally around someone who has spent years answering the call for others.

"Pugs has always put service, family, and community first," the GoFundMe page says. Now, he and his family are facing what is expected to be a long and uncertain recovery.

Donations will help the family with medical bills, rehabilitation and daily living expenses as Johnson recovers. Supporters are also being asked to share his story and keep Pugs, his wife Gidget and their family in their prayers.

Eat, Drink and Support aMuse’um at Annual Food Truck Festival

Get ready for a deliciously good time on Saturday! aMuse'um Children's Museum is rounding up some of the region’s best food trucks for an evening full of flavor, fun, and community spirit! 

aMuse’um is 100% community funded and the annual Food Truck Festival is their largest fundraiser of the year. Funds raised help aMuse’um continue to provide a safe and educational place for children to go all year long. 

This event is held in Downtown Columbia behind the Maury County Clerk's Office in the public parking lot at the corner of E. 7th and Woodland (across from Columbia Motor Alley).

All food and beverages are included with your ticket so you can try food from multiple food trucks without having to deal with the hassle of payment at each truck.

What food trucks are at the event?

  • Hoss Burgers

  • Steaming Goat  

  • Chivanada

  • Taste of Aloha

  • Puckett’s 

  • Jerzee Dogs

  • Smokin’ Buttz 

  • Love Crust

  • Slothful Waffle

  • Roll Up Urban Creamery 

  • Cheesecake Society 

  • My Brothers & Me Forever Lemonade

  • Taps Off Main

Eat, drink, and enjoy—all while supporting a great cause!

Event Details:

Saturday, August 29th | Parking Lot (behind the County Clerk’s Office at East 7th St. & Woodland St.) | Rain or Shine | No Refunds | Adults Only (18+ required) - ID's are required for entry.

Upcoming Local Events

🗓 Have an event to add? Send us the Details!

Tuesday, August 25th

Wednesday, August 26th

Thursday, August 27th

Friday, August 28th

Saturday, August 29th

Sunday, August 30th

👇 Click the Links to Learn About our Local Business Sponsors! 👇

🎵 This Week’s Live Music

Tuesday, August 25
Songwriters Round - Whiskey Alley Saloon, 6-9 PM

Thursday, August 27
Todd Ciprian - Tito's, 6-9 PM
Sarah Gross - Whiskey Alley Saloon, 7:30-9 PM

Friday, August 28
TBA - The Spot: Burgers & Beer, 5-8 PM
Lydia Rae - Buck & Board, 6-8 PM
Tom Saffel & Robert Johnson - McCreary's Irish Pub & Eatery, 7-9 PM
Hit Songwriter Show - The Mulehouse, 7:30 PM
Alyssa Maries - Whiskey Alley Saloon, 7:30-9 PM
The Zmed Brothers - Puckett's, 7:30-9 PM
Wentzel Brothers Band - Fozzy's Bar & Grill, 8-11 PM

Saturday, August 29
CrossBridges - Amber Falls Winery & Cellars, 3-7 PM
Nick Bentely - Grinders Switch Winery, 7-9 PM
Curated Writers Round - The Bourbon Gospel, 7:30 PM
The Branch Fiddle Band - Puckett's, 7:30-9 PM
Junkbox - The Rebel Bar & Grill, 7:30-10:30 PM
Eaglemaniacs - The Mulehouse, 8 PM
Main Street Vinyl - Fozzy's Bar & Grill, 8-11 PM

Sunday, August 30
Small Town Sweethearts - Amber Falls Winery & Cellars, 1-5 PM
Parker & Joe - Fozzy's Bar & Grill, 2-5 PM
Vineyard Sessions - Natchez Hills Vineyard, 2-5 PM

Want to get your business in What’s Up Columbia? Let’s talk