A lot of chainsawing has been going on. The cause of the crash remains under investigation. That should have been done over Thanksgiving! Watch This is Now, live from the Hawaii News Now Digital Center, weekdays on KHNL at 12 p.m. and on all of our streaming platforms. I later learned that Sevier County pays for an emergency notification system called Code Red Alert. I remember a news A day or so later where that fire chief of the Gatlinburg stated that they knew on Sunday that it was predicted the fire would hit Gatlinburg proper by 11 AM on Tuesday morning. It is very hard and slow to navigate through laurel stands and the thick Tennesee Barbed Wire Briar patches. Brush fires spread across multiple counties this afternoon in Southwest Florida due to high winds. The excellent Park folks seemed to just monitor it, and it resolved itself. Thanks again for this forum. You cannot sit and watch a fire in the mountains this close to a town and not call in lots of HELP!!! The fire could have been accidental, or it may have been intentional. As a former FF, their claim that they could have never put it out if they tried from day one is BS. One thing I have learned is that the news media, especially in todays world is just as skilled and often benefits from pushing their own agendas as well. Stupidity is as stupidity does. Its incredulous that evacuation didnt go out then. Money and CNN. The report concluded that the fire was an accident; however, officials said the investigation was limited because the building was not structurally sound. Click here. The Tip Line is 888-653-0009. As we drove south out of Pigeon Forge I took another photo before we entered the spur, which shows smoke and a red glow above Gatlinburg. We spent Thanksgiving there with our family, who left on Sunday. There were cliffs in the area but firefighting Hotshot Crews can figure out how to work on steep slopes, sometimes backing off a bit, constructing a fire line and intentionally burning the fuel in between, preventing further expansion of the fire. We are to be stewards of the land. Until 1 p.m. sustained speeds were 4 to 6 mph with gusts at 12 to 19 mph. The successes, and the losses, the poor decisions, the mistakes, the error and the failures. This would explain why they are all covering for each other. We could get blocked in by both. perish, but for the 14 who did, The helicopter worked until it had to refuel and then two other Type 1 helicopters took its placeuntil dark. Frankly people should lose their jobs and fault should be placed on their shoulders. I can picture all But when it's close to home, the sadness and concern of those affected is ten-fold in the worry department. Branson is built into the mountainous forests of south-central Missouri, is a resort town, and a retirement community and entertainment venue. The actual clifts are small and easily avoided. I cannot count how many times my wife or I would find a fire smoldering typically from someone who flipped a lit cigarette and the brush when they were finished. It was about 11:30AM when we got to downtown Gatlinburg, where I took photos of the heavy on the Parkway in town. Firefighting resources assigned to the fire include 25 hand crews, 61 engines, 6 helicopters, and 2 dozers, for a total 780 personnel. This is how civilians, firefighters, personal property and extensive environmental damage results. The reason that is a point is IMT has experience far beyond any fire teams in east TN or GSMNP, especially with wind-driven wildfires. A true lackadaisical response. Most of us feel there was negligence but sorting it all out is not something I know how to do. This time it is not firefighters but civilian deaths. Published: Oct. 11, 2022 at 5:31 PM PDT GATLINBURG, Tenn. (WVLT) - Four downtown Gatlinburg businesses are picking up the pieces after a fire Sunday morning destroyed their building. Like hell he did. Rippetoe hopes the destruction isnt there much longer and all businesses lost can return. The lawsuits from an event like Gatlinburg could go on for decades. When we got to the bottom of the mountain, we ran into the Sevier County Electric crew where the road was blocked. That is when I said to myself Where the hell is TEMA?. It was as if time had passed with no motivational disaster to spur this awareness, at least not in my local community. By NPS rules a watch should have been kept on the fire overnight Sunday, but such did not happen. Also important is accountability, so is teaching, learning and experience, so is action, so is on and on. I think wildland fire managers should be commended that this fire did not result in a tragic firefighter incident like Yarnell Hills. I felt like people had been robbed of the vital information they needed to make the decisions they needed to be safe. 2 min read. Well said, the terrain here is different than a lot of places, even out west. We must open our eyes and ears and check behind each corner and crevice to see the reality and not just the story being told by a few. I was in my cabin on 28 November and barely made it out alive. This is a failure at the city, county and state levels, as well as top FEMA, leadership. Shame on you. Not to mention all the fallen limbs on the ground beneath them. Contingency plans for how to evacuate the entire town, regardless of the specific hazard, were not well thought out. By the end of the day on Sunday the fire had burned approximately 35 acres, according to Ms. Schroer and the results from a mapping flight (see the 3-D mapabove). One option could be helicopter fire repellers to repel into the fire and make an assessment of risk. Accusations were abundant. It would be interesting to understanding the impact of excessive fuel from dead hemlocks, killed by hemlock wooly adelgid (together with the lack of moisture typically found under a mature, live, shady hemlock canopy, even with the extreme drought conditions) had on this fire. Now he has the benefit of another 60 to 90 days of another investigation before anything officially or otherwise will be said. I dont have the statistics to prove what you wrote is incorrect, but I am convinced that it is not a fact to say most of the fires that are monitored (as opposed to fully suppressed) escape outside the agencys borders. It is the duty of the people and Congress to maintain and voice our concerns and opinions to where check and balances work. there is nothing that can address the failure of leadership at every level that contributed to that loss of life. It was Congress that adjourned for the holidays without passing a bill to fund forest fire fighting efforts. Remember GSMNP is not Yosemite or Yellowstone with extreme fire behavior and a history of problems. Bob and I had discussions about what we would do if we were to be surprised by wildfires up Beech Branch Road with no warning. It was probably 4:45 by this time. It is unfortunate that sometimes a few seek to blame someone so quickly that they miss the opportunity to really get to the root of the causes for those issues in the first place. There is only one check point access at East Parkway (Hwy. And not only they had time to evacuate but I called 911 Monday night on Nov. 28 2016 and ask if there was any evacuation orders for Gatlinburg and was told By The 911 operator no not at this time Later found out the whole place was on fire at the same time I called 911 ( WHY ) was I lied to ? In addition, the valley above Gatlinburg, drained by LeConte Creek, has had enormous numbers of dead hemlock standing and fallen. A stroke in 2011 left Akaka partially paralyzed and unable to speak but he didn't need words to express his joy to be reunited with it. Emergency management should have been all over this from the very beginning. These are the facts and simple truths that should not be ignored. . It was the hottest summer we ever felt. I dont think so they were the people in charge not any of us and they didnt do their job. Had this fire+wind storm happened 3-4 weeks earlier it would have been exponentially worse, lots to be thankful for as we morn with TN. I also wanted to let everyone know that the City and County is an example of nepotism at its finest. Many times, as has been thoroughly vetted during the analysis the Chimney Top 2 wildfire the ONLY option is an all out aggressive, throw the world at it initial attack from air, ground and sea. When the rain started again at 8 a.m. the relative humidity rose into the 90s. One of the owners of the impacted businesses called a contractor to demolish a damaged portion of the building. If their destination is not lit, they have to land there no later than 30 minutes after sunset. 865-637-2442. National Park Service says never push a slower friend down when escaping a bear, Knoxville utilities crews work to restore power after intense storms, Missing elderly Knoxville woman last seen at hospital, police say, Vols drop to 5-seed in SEC Tournament after falling at Auburn, 79-70. fire Sunday morning destroyed their building. Who ever was in charge should loose their job!!! There were ashes raining and that was very alarming to me. The Chimney Tops 2 Fire was reported in Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Gatlinburg, TN at approximately 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, November 23, 2016. But, that team is there to give future corrective actions, not to formulate lawsuits. Early in the afternoon we began to see large crewcab pickup trucks driving past our home. They couldnt get out a cell mssg. Our local congressional representative will be the first to confront the Park Service for numerous shortfalls, bias agendas that cater to special interest groups, and a host of other issues to where the NPS serves itself more so than the people. Though Im missing the boat a little here, my questioning is still legitimate being that any managed ignited fire can still get out of control adding to an existing wildfire or creating one. After the fact they called in helicopters to dump water on the fire which is what they should have done in the first place and didnt, WHY NOT? On Sunday when GSMNP called in helicopter water drops, there were 3 fire tanker planes sitting on the runway 20 minutes away in Chattanooga (covered in Wildfire Today). The next morning, the morning of 28th, I took boys to school and went to a dr. appointment in Sevierville. Then and only then will He let you effectively manage His creation that He has allowed you to be a part of for a short time. That doesnt mean excessive chainsaw mania; but it doesnt mean going to the other extreme with the type of forestry management in some of our Parks and other public lands. The fire was reported to be near the Twin Creeks Picnic Center at 1130. In late 2016, wildfires . Some of the towns most impacted were Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, both near Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There is no cost, and in case you change your mind each email has an unsubscribe button. This was done to simply to avoid tort liability claims even though a claim was filed; and to avoid accountability. I look forward to seeing the report when it comes out. People that I know said that not implementing fire suppression is exactly what they should have done, so we can agree to disagree. In addition, officials confirmed that a firefighter was transported to the hospital with minor injuries from the fire but has since been released. Easy for many of you to sit back and Monday morning quarterback when you dont have skin in the game as I did. Things dont change unless people stand up and make them change. That afternoon a Chinook Type 1 helicopter (Type 1s are the largest helicopters used on wildfires) began dropping water on the fire, refilling at Fontana Lake 13 miles to the southwest, according to a source we talked to who didnt want their name disclosed because they were not authorized to speak on the subject. Waited a month to report this event and turn over the pictures they took to forestry officials! However, I still wonder why there has been no word from the governor about the post-fire review team he promised. It is a sad state of affairs, the loss of life was quite avoidable.