11-29-2016-ERNIE ALLEN’S-TOP STORY-
Thousands of people have been evacuated as wildfires continue to burn in East Tennessee, including in Gatlinburg.
Fire Chief Greg Miller said in a news conference Tuesday morning crews the worst is over, but crews are still actively fighting fires.
“This is a fire for the history books,” Miller said.
PHOTOS: Wildfires burning in East Tennessee
Officials said earlier Tuesday, it’s likely as many as 14,000 residents and visitors have been evacuated from Gatlinburg alone.
Officials say the Chimney Top Fire, which began in the Great Smoky Mountains, spread very rapidly Monday evening as winds as strong as 87 mph pushed flames onto private property. Chief Miller explained because of the high winds, trees were falling onto power lines which caught dry grass on fire.
“It’s been a difficult 24 hours,” he said.
Firefighters from throughout the state, including locally from Nashville, Murfreesboro and Lebanon, have been mobilized to Sevier County, specifically in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, to help fight the wildfire.
“The state is proving a coordinated response, including the National Guard, to help all those affected by the devastating wildfires burning in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and throughout the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) encourages residents in Sevier County to stay off mobile devices, unless it is an emergency, to prevent outage,” said a statement released by Gov. Bill Haslam on Tuesday.
DAMAGES
At least 100 homes in Sevier County, Tennessee, have been impacted, including 100 different structure fires in Gatlinburg. A 16-story hotel on Regan Drive also caught on fire and the Driftwood Apartments near the Park Vista Hotel were also fully engulfed.
A preliminary damage report states that Westgate Resorts is likely entirely gone and Black Bear Falls has likely lost every single cabin.
(Courtesy: Tennessee Highway Patrol)
