None of our fires escaped, in part because we had some very smart, very experienced people in key positions. So sometime during the night as we now know everything burned down. Screenshot from the Knox News video. It appears that only TEMA has the authority to give a notice over multiple counties, but they didnt take the lead until Monday night, after the fact. He actually wrote me back on Christmas Eve, of all things, to tell me that they will keep after it. And . Thus, private, State, or other agencies get left holding the bag, as it were. How many sorties could those planes do in an single day even if they had been deployed on Even Friday?? Talk about finger pointing! Officials said three people. Branches were hitting the house with a great deal of force. All rights reserved. (Originally published at 11:04 a.m. MST November 23 . 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. Will we fail forward? I did blast him; and though I do have the utmost respect for his firefighting endeavors; it it disheartening to see someone with this apparent degree of experience claim this Chimney Tops Fire look at both fires was unpredictable. To successfully allow a fire to burn for a long period of time requires VERY skilled personnel and luck. The Chimneys functionally act as the head of a canyon leading directly to downtown Gatlinburg. How did all the downtown businesses know to close and send their employees home, but not one word of warning was given to homeowners/residents? China Bazaar, Pucker's Sports Grill, Gifts of Gatlinburg, and Caf 420 were all deemed a complete loss. I later learned that Sevier County pays for an emergency notification system called Code Red Alert. Businesses affected by the fire include Puckers Sports Bar, China Bazaar, Cafe 420, and Gifts of Gatlinburg, according to WVLT News crews on the scene. The Tip Line is 888-653-0009. Yes, there had been many fires in the southeast during the 6 to 8 weeks before the fire started in Great Smoky Mountains NP, but it is my understanding that at that time they had diminished and there may have been significant firefighting resources available. Thanksfully ATF agents helped TN Bureau of Investigation put their full resources at hand and arrested to two teenage idiots that started the fire. God doesnt cut financial budgets. Those with information are urged to contact the Tennessee Arson Hotline at 1-800-762-3017 or the GFD at 865-436-5112. I can picture all Too old to start over, fear it could happen again and they could be in their home like I was, or out and out mistrust of local government. I guess they must think when you have to go up there to handle this mess they caused that you dont need lodging, food or gas to get there. Ash move in quickly after a fire, and through the yearly process of shedding their leaves, make it difficult for seeds from the Red Spruce/Fraser Fir/Hemlocks to make an effective seed-soil contact, thus when we lose one of these magnificent evergreen forests, it truly is a tragedy in more ways than one. I would recommend reviewing Wildfire Todays post titled: NPS releases information about the Chimneys Tops Fire 2 as well as the post Analysis of wind, vegetation, and air tankers before the fire burned into Gatlinburg. Its all in moderately dense forest that overhangs above the road. from Gburg. Emergency management should have been all over this from the very beginning. I found this blog and am so grateful to have an opportunity to reply and also to become informed from experienced, caring people of service in the firefighting effort. She may have chosen poor timing, and perhaps not the best method of tackling the issues, but nonetheless we need to start asking the tough questions without being so offended and then take a good hard look at the issues, and how they can be resolved. Mr. Cash cant order an evac, but he could have made a recommendation. Had they viewed the Chimney Tops 2 fire as though it was in the forested southwest Im sure they would have issued pre-evacuation notices up to 48 hours prior to the wind events of that Monday. When we got to the bottom of the mountain, we ran into the Sevier County Electric crew where the road was blocked. So we can learn by others successes and failures but we must also not hang our hats on them either, because the story is as individual and unique as there are an infinite number of variables. Gatlinburg businesses look to rebuild after massive fire. Gatlinburg is in Sevier County. 1 dead in Gatlinburg fire that affected travel to Smokies In total GFD crews, in addition to, Pigeon Forge Fire Department, Sevierville Fire Department, Sevier County Ambulance Service and Pittman Center Fire Department assisted in extinguishing the blaze. Prayers for Gatlinburg - Fairborn Daily Herald Corker and Alexander know what would happen if they tried to interfere with a Federal prosecution! Almost every creek drainage in GSMNP has stands of dead hemlocks (though some areas near roads had some hemlocks treated regularly to prevent adelgid infestation). She saw a fire and called 911. Accountability is important and paying the price for our decisions is too. But I believe there is a fourth element of fire behavior prediction and that is the element of situational awareness. It is unfortunate that in our society people who speak out with a loud voice, or otherwise make waves for the privileged, get not only scorned but categorically destroyed by well planned out and financed design, often full of cover-up and lies and then propaganda is feed to the rest of us, of which we often take for gospel, when in fact is often not based on evidence or fact. Not every fire manager gets the benefit of a meteorologist in your hip pocket, but there are many good weather websites available. The park should have been begging for help and putting out warnings all week end!!! There are other variables that are of concern here too, such as area resources that are already low and being taxed by the sheer number of fires occurring in the region, the growth of urban interface among the eastern forests, rugged mountainous terrain and economic restraints. Zoom Abruptly Fires President Greg Tomb 'Without Cause' Standing dead hemlock burned up their trunks, to as high as 50 feet on one specimen I saw. I hope they end up being involved in the biggest lawsuit anyone has ever seen! I realize some of my questioning is speculative and yet legitimate. The aptly named Fire Cherry, Beech and Mtn. Incident Mgt. I am in my late 60s and have never seen such a drought, or such low stream levels. There may be some validity in the DA doing that, but it sure calls their integrity into question. You are among several Gatlinburg residents that posted local officials told them that everything was OK as late as 5:30 and there was no evacuation notice. Stupidity is as stupidity does. Death toll rises to 13 in Tennessee wildfires as grim search for 1,000 feet of rise / 0.2 mile (1,056 feet) is a slope of 94.7%, not 77%. I phoned 911 and reported that the fire was approaching our home and that it was within a few feet of the city/park boundary. with a notice that evacuation is imminent would have been prudent. Both east and west forks of the Pigeon River. There was lots of sunlight and lots of low-level vegetation so much that the trail was overgrown and we decided to turn around. We, the public, have to be activists for our own safety, the very safety that public officials claim to protect. A spokesperson for the city said the Gatlinburg Fire Department was dispatched to the 700 block of Parkway in downtown Gatlinburg at 6:39 a.m. on October 9. I went back a few years ago and it was completely different. During fire suppression efforts, crews found one person dead inside the structure. It is no wonder that the people do not trust Government. People who live in forested areas need to be aware of fire danger. Just the mechanics of this devastating wildfire without any editorial comments. According to the great gag order, government officials should not be commenting???? I know that because of my experience, my training, my ongoing learning and situational awareness of a host of related and seemingly unrelated knowledge. Why did they wait until Monday to do a voluntary a evacuation or were the city father is involved in the decision not to panic the thousands and thousands of people still there for the Thanksgiving holiday. My question to the Deputy Super: If the Chimney Tops Fire 2 of Nov 23rd to 28th, 2016 could not have been extinguished before the winds came; and there was plenty of time to act before the winds came; then how come GSMNP fire crews apparently extinguished the first Chimney Tops Fire of Nov 12/13th, 2016? I have seen local hiking pictures that appear to show two separate smoke columns on Saturday 11/26. Until theyre able to return, Neddo hates to see the Gatlinburg Parkway location gone, but he hopes the next place will be even better. Beginningat 2 a.m. on Sunday November 27 the relative humidity at Indian Grave dropped,getting as low as 17 percent at 8 a.m. and then lingering in the 20s and 30s until 4 am on Monday November 28. Thank-you Bill for your through and in depth analysis of this wildfires chain-of events. Most of us are hopeful the two young man responsible for causing this fire will be severely punished however after all of the expert testimony to not only the Knoxville news Sentinel times what other periodicals claiming gross mishandling of the beginning of the Chimney Tops 2 fire by the forestry service as well as the Gatlinburg fire department I am certain that the Philadelphia lawyer that they have hired will use this in their defense and I would not bet that they will get a much lighter sentence as a result . Because we were heading home to Ohio early Tuesday morning, we packed our suitcases and put them in the car. I always come back to that groupthink mentality, the ladder of inference, the been there done that mode, the failure/fear to act, and thats how weve always done it thinking; all part of how our unconscious brain works without our conscious intervention and critical thinking skills. Those with information are urged to contact the Tennessee Arson Hotline at 1-800-762-3017 or the GFD at 865-436-5112. This fire as did others around this time had highly predictable potential for massive and rapid spread. Regarding the Chimney Tops Fire of Nov 14th, 2016, https://www.facebook.com/GreatSmokyMountainsNPS/posts/1236286613095333. Impressive. Basically telling the press, the public and the injured families to go to hell. Im surprised Cherokee Orchard Rd. The whole thing is unconscionable to me. Many are willing to allow the absolute open permission to some to behave as they will without question, but are unwilling to allow others the same room to learn and grow. The fire gutted the entire city block and closed a dozen businesses. Thanks Henry. As a contractor I worked with a Dunes engine in Michigan MI years ago. If we are so quick to remove those who are learning from their experience, successes and failures, do we not lessen the potential to create and benefit from more experts who will have more knowledge and wisdom to apply to future events? GFD officials examined the scene and found a body, later identified as Joe Martin Bates, in Suite 4. Anyone who has toured the hillsides where most of the homes that were destroyed would know immediately how difficult evacuations would be. It was about 11:30AM when we got to downtown Gatlinburg, where I took photos of the heavy on the Parkway in town. I visited Gatlinburg on a trip to Asheville NC, in 1980. Are they learning how to use it? Hindsight is 20/20 and of course much coulda woulda shoulda is understandable. The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the GFD, Gatlinburg Police Department and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. At this time, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation officials were contacted, according to the report. First of all I was very concerned when the wildfires started over in North Carolina, in some of the National Forest that border Great Smoky Mountain National Park. I left early to get boys and filled Stantons old Subaru Outback up with gas. That is when it would have been prudent to announce a pre-evacuation notice for the Gatlinburg area to be ready to evacuate if an evacuation order is announced. That would mean your timeline of the last water drop would possibly vary 15-45 minutes depending on the helibase location and flight time to the dipsite. With all due respect to your comment, you seem to be a bit condescending toward some folks asking very legitimate questions; and giving the impression you are trying to the get the heat off the back of NPS officials. Money. Jeanne: I do not disagree with your thought process regarding some of the broad challenges wildland fire mangers have faced in the past thirty some years. The Chimney Tops 2 could be a good case in point. The three places the fire was stated to have been seem to line up pretty straight on the map. I wish this would turn into the biggest Court case in history. The fire burned 38,000 acres of state managed conservation areas and private timber lands. We believed the firefighters were going to stop the fire from entering the city. My wife and I hiked to Alum Cave Bluffs Saturday, Nov. 26, while the fire was small up on the Chimneys. After action reports with ample opportunity for community input led to better pre-fire management and intra-agency coordination of resources. As a citizen with a firefighting background, I knew days ahead of time that high mountain winds were expected in the Eastern TN/NC Mountains, coupling that with the extreme drought conditions and the knowledge of the massive amount of ground fuel available in the forest based on being in the forest regularly even just days prior, outside observing the conditions and the terrain. On the radio, a man in the Forestry truck was somewhere around the Roaring Fork area (as I recall) looking for possible spot fires reported near a residence and was talking about the strong winds. GATLINBURG, Tenn. (WVLT) - On Friday, Gatlinburg city officials released a report detailing the downtown fire on Oct. 9 that killed one person and injured another. strong south, southwest winds, extreme drought, low humidity..ect.., that something similar didnt happen here. Thank all of you. I wonder why? Increasing cloudiness and strong southerly winds on Monday ahead of the next storm system. The further fire growth part was more accurate than they realized at the time. The notice went out to people within 10 miles of the fireline. Brush fires spread across multiple counties this afternoon in Southwest Florida due to high winds. Former Gatlinburg fire chief reflects as new wildfires burn - WTVF They had no sirens or Claxons blaring, no shouting to evacuate thru their grill mounted speakers. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. I was in my cabin on 28 November and barely made it out alive. Join our group. Earlier on Tuesday, media reported that a man was arrested for setting three fires that spread into a 300-acre fire in. Susan, 3:36 p.m. Gatlinburg Fire Department is going door-to-door asking residents to voluntarily evacuate to a Red Cross evacuation shelter set up at the Gatlinburg Community Center located at 156 . I am broken-hearted over it .. I can name 14 people who deserved much better! Firefighting resources assigned to the fire include 25 hand crews, 61 engines, 6 helicopters, and 2 dozers, for a total 780 personnel. All my constructive criticisms are not targeted to Park personnel in general. IMT issued pre-evacuation notices in GA and NC each time they saw cold-front winds approaching that could would threaten communities. it would not be the first time that political or other motivation caused biased reporting. Person killed in downtown Gatlinburg fire identified Rockslide on the Spur Gatlinburg Pigeon Forge - wate.com Yes. Kids should be charged and pay a price but so do several officials in the good old boy still lives on in the town of Gatlinburg. I am not holding my breath. So property owners are left to deal with everything and if we had the power we would have done something like worrying the crap out of all of them until action was taken. Their lack of extended skill training is apparent. The 2016 Gatlinburg wildfire was deadliest in the eastern half of the U.S. since the Great Fires of 1947 in Maine and the worst in the history of Great . Gatlinburg businesses look to rebuild after massive fire Ive not had a chance to hike post-fire areas in the mountains yet to see fires effect on dead hemlocks, but what Henry said about dead stumps burning into the ground looking like a volcano rings true with what Ive witnessed in mountain forest areas that burned decades ago. Citing the steep terrain and the safety of firefighters, fire managers at Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GRSM) decided not to take direct action on the fire which would entail constructing fireline along the edge of the fire to remove the fuel that allows it to spread. Though once high winds hit, given the conditions there was no stopping the fire from destroying property. With that said: were NPS officials aggressive enough in seriously emphasizing to Gatlinburg officials to start preparing for mandatory evacuations? Thats perfect Johnny. Park Service has not issued any warnings and there are no active fires in Gatlinburg city limits. I ask her if they had plans of issuing a warning if evacuations became necessary and ask her how they would do that. OF COURSE the dead hemlocks (and spruces and firs) are changing the picture for fire danger. That night after we arrived home we started getting text from friends showing fires at the Park Vista Hotel, then one from our neighbors across the street, he lives in Knoxville called and said he had been there at 5:30 P.M. this was on the 28th and when he left it was smokey but everything was still fine. We watched local news and weather forecasts. The miracle is that more people did not A massive wildfire in the Tennessee resort towns of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge has destroyed more than 150 structures, including homes and businesses, authorities said Tuesday. It was probably 4:45 by this time. We need to hold, that experience though often shared, does not fit into every mold, because in the real world though some laws are universal, there is always changing variable and situations are never really exactly the same. Those decisions had to be made with the best information available at the time not what we now know in post incident critique. I know for a fact that all humans are not as tuned into Nature as others. There are many many folks who even if cell service were functional could not afford it. It was extremely dark and small branches and twigs were pelting our car. Apparently, when the second fire was started by the defendants on the 23rd, the NPS assumed they could handle the 23rd fire like they did the first fire of the 14th. Now I can only imagine what children or adults with issues might have gleaned from this message being broadcast. Some of the drainages where the managers hoped to stop the fire were a half mile away. GSMNP manager said he couldnt order an evacuation but he surely could have recommended one as the forecast for high winds was given early Sunday. It is a sad state of affairs, the loss of life was quite avoidable. Pacific Buddhist Academy set to hold 17th annual Taiko Festival, the 14th annual Kualoa Hakipuu canoe festival back after a few years of kind of being shuttered because of the pandemic. People were ready to leave their home in 15 min. He has had to struggle with the untimely death of his very healthy and active in younger retirement parents but both of us having been an EMS and fire service, he is of the opinion just as I am that the NPS as well as the Gatlinburg fire chief and the city and county officials have the most of blood on their hands . What Caused The Gatlinburg Fire - BikeHike Great info/synopsis of the Gatlinburg/Sevier county wildfires. Classic Swiss Cheese risk management fire management failurehave we as a profession learned anything since South Canyon, Yarnell and now Chimney Top 2? When two juveniles were arrested on December 7 and charged with aggravated arson, many people assumed they had the answer. On the evening of the fire, I was monitoring tornadic storms across northern Mississippi because my family were driving to 100-acre brush fire causes evacuations in Collier County