![]() He said authorities haven’t been able to find them. Since then, he’s been trying to find out what happened to Constance and their daughters, Chloe, 12, and Lily, 9. Some major attractions such as the Ober Gatlinburg ski area and amusement park survived, but plenty of homes and other businesses were destroyed, and Gatlinburg residents have yet to be allowed back into the city to assess the damage. Wildfires have burned in parts of the Southeast for weeks, fueled by the region’s worst drought in nearly a decade. If you can, please give to the Red Cross or local support agencies. Video: A look at the devastation on roadway up to Ober Gatlinburg. Investigators believe the trail fire was “human caused,” Soehn said, without offering further information, but it’s still under investigation. But strong winds that began Sunday helped the fire spread into the Gatlinburg area on Monday. The fires that reached Gatlinburg began days earlier on a trail in the mountains 10 miles south of the city, National Park Service spokeswoman Dana Soehn said. But the stormy weather could also cause problems: Lightning strikes and winds – gusts up to 30 mph are possible Wednesday – could spark more fires, and the downpour could prompt flash flooding. ![]() The area could be helped by up to 2 inches of rain expected Wednesday into Thursday. Authorities also continued to block Gatlinburg, from which about 14,000 residents and tourists were evacuated Monday. One of the bodies was found Wednesday in a burned motel, officials said.Ī new structure caught fire Wednesday afternoon in Gatlinburg, Gatlinburg Fire Chief Greg Miller said. ![]() “Right now, search and rescue is our main challenge.” He hasn’t heard from his mom, Alice Hagler, since Monday night. Wood said his mother was telling him on the phone the wildfire that had roared into Gatlinburg had ignited her home. James Wood’s mother is among those missing. Waters said about 53 people were injured, and many of them have been released from the hospital. The fires spread with little warning Monday from the Great Smoky Mountains into inhabited areas in and near the resort towns of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. More than 700 buildings were either damaged or destroyed in Sevier County and in the Gatlinburg city limits, Waters said. Several others are said to be missing after the blazes scorched roughly 15,000 acres in a resort-heavy area of eastern Tennessee, which showered residents with embers and forced tourists to evacuate from their accommodations. “All of us are praying for those families and are very distressed at the loss of life in this situation,” Waters said. He said he thinks the three latest victims were adults. The death toll from raging wildfires fires in Sevier County, Tennessee, climbed to seven after authorities recovered three more bodies at a residence, officials said Wednesday.Īuthorities are working to identify all the victims and will notify their families as soon as possible, Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters said.
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