Downtown Gatlinburg under mandatory evacuation order due to wildfire.

[intheworks]

you can follow the situation from here, pretty good info



https://www.facebook.com/WBIRChannel10/

 

[Twende]

This was just announced. HEARTBREAKING: More sad news to report tonight. Family members confirm Alice Hagler, who was missing, was found dead in her Gatlinburg cabin. Here family had been on the phone with her and were cut off as the house began to burn.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

This is just unbelievable how quickly this fire turned deadly so quickly. I cannot imagine living on those ridges and getting trapped. It is like you need a "fire shelter" underground or something.

 

[JimMIA]

I've been wondering if this was similar to the Yellowstone fires of '88 that could have been lessened if not for decades of fire suppression leading up to the dry year disaster.

That's certainly possible, although the high winds (80 mph) are cited as the main factor. Wind or no wind, you have to have fuel for a fire and it's not the big trees that burn -- it's the understory.

I know locally getting all the layers of permissions necessary for prescribed burns is a bureaucratic nightmare. NPS is not known for bureaucratic competence -- at all, and especially in the SE Region. So you may be onto something.

 

[Shmily1]

This was just announced. HEARTBREAKING: More sad news to report tonight. Family members confirm Alice Hagler, who was missing, was found dead in her Gatlinburg cabin. Here family had been on the phone with her and were cut off as the house began to burn.

Her son was on the news here thanking people for the prayers for his mom and his family and letting them know she was found. Such a sad situation for all involved.

 

[Twende]

They have found 3 more bodies but still no official ID's for an of the bodies. That makes 10 in total.

Jon and Janet Summers have now been confirmed deceased. Their 3 adult sons are in a hospital but have been informed of their parents deaths. Such a tragedy!

Thursday night the death count went to 11 as another body as found.

 

[#1hoosierfan]

They have found 3 more bodies but still no official ID's for an of the bodies. That makes 10 in total.

Jon and Janet Summers have now been confirmed deceased. Their 3 adult sons are in a hospital but have been informed of their parents deaths. Such a tragedy!

This family lived in my town until recently. I did not know them, but everything I have read says they were a very close, giving, wonderful family. They were on a weekend getaway with their sons. Breaks my heart.

 

[Mizzoufan]

GATLINBURG, Tenn. (AP) - Here's the Latest on wildfires in eastern Tennessee that have killed seven people and destroyed hundreds of homes and businesses (all times local):

7:30 p.m.

Authorities have arrested a man on charges of setting an eastern Tennessee wildfire that burned 65 acres.

The state Department of Agriculture says its Agricultural Crime Unit and Sequatchie County authorities charged Dakota Tucker, 24, of Monteagle with deliberately setting a fire Nov. 14 in Sequatchie County.

Tucker is being held in Grundy County jail and additional charges are pending.

A conviction would carry a sentence of one to six years in jail and up to $3,000 in fines.

More than 1,400 wildfires have burned across Tennessee this year. Officials suspect almost half of them are arson.

Tucker is one of several people charged in setting wildfires in Tennessee recently. ___


In my opinion a few murder charges wouldn't hurt.

 

[Twende]

This news article made me so sad. It is about Alice Hagler whose family announced the she is one of the fatalities.

"....... Hagler was likely preparing for an upcoming family trip to Disney World when the flames approached Monday, her daughter-in-law Rachel Wood said. Wood said she talked to her by phone late Monday afternoon, and that Hagler was nervous about strong winds shaking her house. Unbeknownst to either of them, the wind would push the fire to the home.
"She was unsettled, and she was scared," Rachel Wood told "New Day" on Thursday. "She said she felt like her house was going to blow down because of the winds, and she said there was ash in the air."
Hours later, the family said, she called her son James Wood to tell him that her home had caught fire.
"I told her to get out immediately," and then the line disconnected, James Wood told CNN affiliate WATE earlier this week.
Hagler was supposed to have met Lyle and Rachel and her two grandchildren in their home in Savannah, Georgia, on Tuesday. From there, they were supposed to have gone to Disney World this week.
"She loved those kids very much," Lyle Wood said. "She was one of those ladies that just loved people. ... She never found anybody she wasn't willing to talk to."
"We ask for prayers for the people that are still trying to figure out how to put this thing all back together." ........"

 

[Shutterbug]

Jon and Janet Summers have now been confirmed deceased. Their 3 adult sons are in a hospital but have been informed of their parents deaths. Such a tragedy!

Thursday night the death count went to 11 as another body as found.

I just read about their ordeal. How the family tried to evacuate by car but got blocked so they tried to evacuate on foot. The sons got separated from the parents. After hearing how Jon and Janet were identified by dental records, I kinda hope the smoke got to them first before the fire.

 

[Twende]

I just read about their ordeal. How the family tried to evacuate by car but got blocked so they tried to evacuate on foot. The sons got separated from the parents. After hearing how Jon and Janet were identified by dental records, I kinda hope the smoke got to them first before the fire.

I was thinking the same thing. What a horrid job the Medical Examiner has had to do! There are still so many missing although this morning they upped the total to 13. One lady passed away from a heart attack brought on by the smoke and running from the fire.

I found this article this morning that says that 6 bodies have been ID's now. Her family has announced that Alice Hagler has been confirmed as fatality. She was suppose to be in Disney World this week.

".... Authorities have identified six victims so far, although one name they haven’t made public, since the family hasn’t been notified.

Those named at this point are John Tegler, 71 and his wife Marilyn, 70 of Canada, and 61-year-old Jon and Janet Summers of Memphis. All four were found in Chalet Village.
May Evelyn Norred Vance, 75, of Gatlinburg, also was identified. She died of a heart attack."

I found the similarities of the names of the 2 couples strange in that they were both a form or John and Janet. I have since correct the names above. At the press conference, the mayor named the one woman Janet later it was corrected to Marilyn. I also heard one of the Summers boys, Jared, has been released from the hospital. That is at least hopeful news.

 

[tcufrog]

People who do this should face federal murder charges.

 

[asta]

People who do this should face federal murder charges.

I agree. I think I read that officials were looking at the Chimney Top trails to see where the fire started. I don't know how they would pinpoint who was there at the time. I am not sure but my daughter thinks these trails leave from the visitor center right at the beginning of the park. Maybe there is some record from that.

 

[Twilight Sparkle]

I agree. I think I read that officials were looking at the Chimney Top trails to see where the fire started. I don't know how they would pinpoint who was there at the time. I am not sure but my daughter thinks these trails leave from the visitor center right at the beginning of the park. Maybe there is some record from that.

The Chimneys are a bit of a drive away from the visitor's center. The Chimneys are on the way to Newfound Gap and have their own picnic area and trail head parking lot. There are some much smaller, tamer trails near the visitor's center. We were there, though, before the fire got completely out of hand, and the fire was definitely towards the top of the Chimney Tops trail. It was sad to see the flames on the mountain when headed back down from the Clingman's Dome area.

 

[Wendy31]

Growing up, DH's family would always picnic at the Chimneys, so it's a special place for him - every time we visit we have to drive through the area.

W/ the winds, the fire just got out of control so quickly! So, so scary!

One report I read said the winds were "hurricane force".

Over the years, we've rented cabins in the Smoky Mountains, and many of the mountain roads are very steep & curvy. They are sometimes hard to navigate on a good day, so I can't imagine how hard it must have been for the people fleeing the fire. And absolutely terrifying! And, while some of the cabins have close neighbors, a lot of the cabins are tucked away in little nooks in the mountain, surrounded by woods.

The video of the 2 men coming down w/ their dog was horrifying, & it's just a miracle they made it down safely. During the video, you can hear their dog panting because it was so hot & suffocating.

Has anyone seen anything recently about the man who was separated from his wife & kids? I also read a story about a couple was inside their cabin when they heard an explosion. The husband went to investigate but never came back. The wife looked for him & called for him, but, when the fire got too close, she had to leave w/ her dogs. And the only way she made it down was w/ the help of some rescuers. But I haven't read anything more about her story, so I don't know if her husband was ever found.

It's heartbreaking. And the people who started the fire should be charged w/ murder.

The fires around us have been determined to be arson too, & a couple of different people have been arrested.

 

[Twende]

Another body ID'ed. Rev. Ed Taylor was found dead outside of his home due to smoke inhalation, according to son who spoke with detectives. The World War II veteran was 85.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Picnicking next to the roaring mountain creek at the Chimney's picnic area (which, yes, is located between Gatlinburg and Newfound Gap at the top of the mountains on the TN/NC border) has been one of my absolute favorite things to do in the area.
Wow...

I hate to say this, but knowing that hundreds of staff, firefighters, weather specialists, and officials had been monitoring the fire and weather situation for days... None of this was an instantaneous 'surprize'. It just wasn't. My brother was a firefighter. My husband knows somebody who worked for years with TN Dept. of Forestry (which arguably biggest responsibility is wildfire). Because of the National Park, Feds have also been closely involved.

Information and evacuations, restrictions, and warnings should have been put out WAY WAY sooner.
For both the locals, and especially being aware of unfamiliar and unconnected visitors.
This is not just wishful thinking.
I believe that this is a valid and educated opinion.

Now that there has been a little time to come to grips with what happened. I will just say this....
IMHO, some of the responsibility and blame rests squarely on their shoulders.

The number of live's lost...

 

[Twende]

Picnicking next to the roaring mountain creek at the Chimney's picnic area (which, yes, is located between Gatlinburg and Newfound Gap at the top of the mountains on the TN/NC border) has been one of my absolute favorite things to do in the area.
Wow...

I hate to say this, but knowing that hundreds of staff, firefighters, weather specialists, and officials had been monitoring the fire and weather situation for days... None of this was an instantaneous 'surprize'. It just wasn't. My brother was a firefighter. My husband knows somebody who worked for years with TN Dept. of Forestry (which arguably biggest responsibility is wildfire). Because of the National Park, Feds have also been closely involved.

Information and evacuations, restrictions, and warnings should have been put out WAY WAY sooner.
For both the locals, and especially being aware of unfamiliar and unconnected visitors.
This is not just wishful thinking.
I believe that this is a valid and educated opinion.

Now that there has been a little time to come to grips with what happened. I will just say this....
IMHO, some of the responsibility and blame rests squarely on their shoulders.

The number of live's lost...

I agree and disagree with what you said about evacuations.

We live in the mountains of North GA and right now, as we speak we are flanked on 2 sides by wild fires. One is about 4 -5 miles from us and mostly contained with the current weather conditions and the other is about 3 miles from us and 65% contained again with current wind conditions. If the wind would change or come in suddenly, strongly, and early as it did in Gatllnburg, we could have fire on our doorstep in way under 5 minutes. So do we evacuate now, and if so we would have been evacuated since the end of October? We know the fire is there. We try to be aware but what do you really do? We own a cell phone but it does not work in our home and our home phones are connected to the internet so when power goes out or the internet goes down, we have no phones. Our county does have an emergency system and we are signed up. They know that most likely we would need a knock on the door to make us completely aware in a quick emergency. Our road is long, steep, curvy, and gravel with only has one way out.
There has not been a fire like this here in anyones life time. It is simply unheard of until now.

I understand how quickly the Gatlinburg fire spread and the gale force winds came in strong and I think 12 hours earlier than had been predicted. An emergency phone order would not have been any more successful there than one would be here. As cell signal is so spotty that you can not depend on it.

Yes it might have been smart to move people as soon as the chimney fire was spotted but in a resort area, you are talking business loss and that is the livelihood of many in that area. Yes in hindsight it was clear they should have moved people out the day before but no one could have had the foresight to see what was going to happen.

I am thankful that for now, we are not in their shoes. Our area has lost one home and one building on the top of a bald. No personal or known animal injuries and no firefighters have be hurt. Well I take that back I just heard that one firefighter (from a neighboring fire) was found dead in his room this morning. They have not ruled on cause of death yet.

I hope Gatlinburg stays strong, learns some lessons, and comes back recovered yet respectful of the lives lost.

 

[LilyWDW]

Picnicking next to the roaring mountain creek at the Chimney's picnic area (which, yes, is located between Gatlinburg and Newfound Gap at the top of the mountains on the TN/NC border) has been one of my absolute favorite things to do in the area.
Wow...

I hate to say this, but knowing that hundreds of staff, firefighters, weather specialists, and officials had been monitoring the fire and weather situation for days... None of this was an instantaneous 'surprize'. It just wasn't. My brother was a firefighter. My husband knows somebody who worked for years with TN Dept. of Forestry (which arguably biggest responsibility is wildfire). Because of the National Park, Feds have also been closely involved.

Information and evacuations, restrictions, and warnings should have been put out WAY WAY sooner.
For both the locals, and especially being aware of unfamiliar and unconnected visitors.
This is not just wishful thinking.
I believe that this is a valid and educated opinion.

Now that there has been a little time to come to grips with what happened. I will just say this....
IMHO, some of the responsibility and blame rests squarely on their shoulders.

The number of live's lost...

I trust the professionals that have to make these calls. I don't think right now is the time nor the place to start playing armchair quarterback and judging what was or was not done. When everything is said and done, they will look at what happened and what could be changed for the better.

 

[bgirldeb]

They found the body of Constance Reed, but not the girls
http://wate.com/2016/12/03/gatlinburg-church-to-hold-news-conference-on-reed-family/

Update :
Family tells WATE 6 On Your Side two bodies were found near Constance Reed. Grandmother Jeannie Gardner believes they are her granddaughters, 9-year-old Lily and 12-year-old Chloe, but she is waiting on positive identification from the medical examiner’ office.