And each structure became much more of a threat than the spreading ground fire ever was. Over 130 sustained injuries, and 1,684 structures have been damaged or destroyed. It just so happens that at this time hundreds of fires were subsequently being started all around the south! The public cannot sit on their hands and expect anything to change. Read more Tennessee Wildfire Cause: Gatlinburg Fires May Have Been Man-Made, Officials Claim is an article from: The Inquisitr News. Analyzing the fire that burned into Gatlinburg - Wildfire Today Our place was gone. LeConte. Not committing firefighters to direct attack in a steep very hard to access high risk area was a good decision. She replied, Mrs. By definition, prescribed burning is described as fire applied in a knowledgeable manner to forest and grassland fuels on a specific land area under selected weather conditions to accomplish predetermined, well-defined management objectives, pg 2, http://www.southernfireexchange.org/etc/ITPFISE.pdf. 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. In addition, officials confirmed that a firefighter was transported to the hospital with minor injuries from the fire but has since been released. The main road out of Gatlinburg is the Spur, which is the 5 mile stretch of Park Service Road that lies between Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. 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. the downtown fire on Oct. 9 that killed one person and injured another. I thought if we were have to leave we could take both vehicles to our friends house to sit out the night. The contractor who had been working outside on the house left as it got dark early because of the smoke. The individual was identified as Joe Martin Bates, 54, according to the Sevier County Medical Examiners office. However, an event such as the Gatlinburg fires undoubtedly leads to a can of worms that some folks would rather just sweep under the rug. Chimney 2 Fire Archives - Wildfire Today Did the fire have to be so devastating? No. Our world is complex and it is a system of interacting parts, we all need to start thinking more globally (meaning systemic and how each part interacts with the other) in our processes and understand how each choice, decision and action we take personally and as a group affect all the other parts. Arson charges dropped against teens accused in deadly Gatlinburg - WJLA An expert, a hero or success is the one who takes a vulnerable risk at making a decision and by grace the outcome is positive, by contrast is the person who makes similar vulnerable risk in decision-making and by grace the outcome is negative. Lets just live in denial, honor the government no matter what; and allow history to repeat itself with numerous secular and religious dictators. When boys and I got back home around 3:45, the winds were beginning to pick up and branches were beginning to fall. When we reached Turkey Nest Road there was a big white crewcab pickup truck parked in front of Barbaras Real Estate. That said, it is always easier for those outside of the forest to see the big picture then those who are standing inside the trees down on the forest floor. Kelly, Lloyd and anyone else that had home and/or businesses losses from the fire, tell everyone involved to write and/or call the governors office about what is going on. The cause of the crash remains under investigation. I told him to go up and park in driveway close to where I wanted to leave the truck and that I would drive truck up. Those are low numbers for the southeastern United States. High winds were to start soon and rain was 5 hours away as indicated by radar. The leafless trees allowed more sunlight to hit the fuel, drying it out even more. Very good pictures! It was the hottest summer we ever felt. Updated: Dec. 25, 2022 at 6:15 PM PST. Jody, you have said well what Ive wanted to say from my impressions made after the fire about this tragic situation. (PETER PARKS/AFP via Getty Images) Chan estimated the insurance claim could . In my eyes, TEMA should have taken control of the situation and ordered evacuations before sunset. At 10AM we drove to Sevierville to buy more materials (to eventually add to the bonfire). It would make suppression efforts difficult, but a fire break could have been constructed around the original slow-moving fire in the early days. I wonder why? I agree that there needs to to be a change of attitude about climate change, wildfire potential in the east, an adaptation to changing conditions and a throwing out of the holding on to the been there done that, know all there is to know, seen this before thinking and the holding onto a world that used to be. On Friday, Gatlinburg city officials released a report detailing the downtown fire on Oct. 9. I said a quick prayer for safety and we started up hill to leave our truck. It was as if time had passed with no motivational disaster to spur this awareness, at least not in my local community. Who allowed this to happen? Bob called. Alice Hagler was reported missing by her family and later confirmed dead. What the fire victims need is non-biased experts to analyze the BACKFIRES that the NPS claims they ignited to protect NPS structures. Experience in itself is never enough. I think this is more often than not the case. Much of the southeastern United States had been suffering extremely dry conditions for two to three months. Will the Firefighter Safety crutch of the last twenty plus years be the political linchpin to justify fire management strategy and tactics employed by the GSNP? Some may be pines, but the vast majority appear to be hemlocks. I have an Gatlinburg address but the county services my street. Not sure on how the Hemlock Wooly Adelgid infects our truly awesome and beautiful Hemlocks, but I do know that the Balsam Wooly Adelgid, the non-native insect that has helped to lay waste to the equally magnificent Fraser Fir forests such as found on the highest peaks Clingmans Dome, Mt. Compare the events to their fire management manual and contradictions are present. 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. Maybe within the next year, well see some kind of progress come together, said Neddo. Well said, the terrain here is different than a lot of places, even out west. 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. I went back a few years ago and it was completely different. By being so quick to lynch people we have created a fear of decision-making and a paralysis of critical thinking. Their chronological order of events doesnt match up with what some folks were observing posted on social media. 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. Published: Dec. 24, 2022 at 10:17 AM PST GATLINBURG, Tenn. (WVLT) - On Friday, Gatlinburg city officials released a report detailing the downtown fire on Oct. 9 that killed one person and. Money. I have here a firsthand account of how a homeowner, who lost her house, lived through the days before the fire and through the fire. This country was founded on open respectful discussion, such as this which has occurred in this article commentary and blog comments. God doesnt cut financial budgets. Limbs began to fall. They were flying water drops on Sunday with the equipment available (National Guard choppers). To repeat what you have already said, people on the mountain especially Chalet Village north, no longer feel safe . I have a photo I took from the Walmart parking lot looking south that shows how smoky it was in Pigeon Forge. Good comments by all. Once again: the questions remain unanswered. I guess they are helping the people they always help and the rest of us are out of luck. Before we got in the car, we each took photos of the approaching fire with our cell phones. The city said crews working the structure fire that . Being an avid mountain hiker, I had seen evidence of fires from decades ago (Graveyard Fields being a macro example, but most prior fires in the forest were just like the ones this fall floor duff and fallen dead wood). 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. Wildland firefighters typically request Spot Weather Forecasts from the NWS for wildland fires or other events that can be greatly influenced by weather. Things are changing slowly, and the human factors are unfortunately changing at a much slower pace than the climate and other socio-economic factors. Just looking at media coverage on the evacuation order public messaging snafu points out that this fire will provide many lessons learned for future fire managers. I realize the City of Gatlinburg is open and ready for business and business is booming, thats good for them but it doesnt help those of us that lost their home. Sweeney, to be honest weve never experienced circumstances quite like this. I thanked her, hung up and told Stanton to go load Ladys kennel. Case in point is our European religious history. This leads to continuation of the same issues over and over because the root of the problems are not being dealt with, and therefore it is just a matter of time before another failure occurs and someone else becomes the blamed one, totally ignoring the real issues. Special interest groups and other self serving human beings with other priorities cut budgets. This rain took much of the heat out of the vegetation fire and slowed the spread, but smoke from the burning structures in the communities and smouldering logs in the Park continued to fill the air. Its sad. Our government has been paying these communications companies millions in tax breaks and tax dollars to provide cellular and other affordable services to rural America, and they are failing to do so or providing the services at outrageous rates. You are correct in pointing out the dead hemlocks. Why the complacency? Excellent points, Jody. Im hoping at this point, its going to be pretty quick. One option could be helicopter fire repellers to repel into the fire and make an assessment of risk. It was hard to drive because of falling leaves, branches, smoke, wind, and nerves. I have a close friend on IMT in southern CO so have some familiarity with the process. The Gatlinburg Fire Department was dispatched to the 700 block of Parkway in downtown Gatlinburg at 6:39 a.m. on October 9. Fire crews were dispatched to a structure fire around 6:30. https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1477959465566642&id=100000578092120. According to Ms.Schroer, firefighters walked up the Chimney Tops Trail to the top of the hill to size it up. Obviously spent no time in the military so they didnt know how to field dress A cigarette and pack it out. When we got to the bottom of the mountain, we ran into the Sevier County Electric crew where the road was blocked. On Monday November 28 it recorded wind gusts in that part of the state at46 to 60 mph, and a 76 mph gust on Wednesday. How the Historic Gatlinburg Fires Happened; a Humble Start - GovTech From just across the Smokies in Bryson City, N.C./Swain county. I visited Gatlinburg on a trip to Asheville NC, in 1980. Years ago, the NPS wasnt maintaining the churches in Cades Cove of the Smokies. I hope this video puts people at ease that this fire is. Ive learned so much on this blog over the past 6 weeks about how forest fires are managed and fought and Im most grateful for that. CNN A wildfire burning near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Sevier County, Tennessee, has grown to more than 3,700 acres and impacted more than 100 structures, County Mayor Larry. Gatlinburg fatal fire investigation continues as crews demolish building They were in their driveway with a water hose. It was a very horrible dream and I had qualms about my trip before I arrived in Branson. Lets see what reviews done by people with expertise in wildland fire management come up with. Firefighting resources assigned to the fire include 25 hand crews, 61 engines, 6 helicopters, and 2 dozers, for a total 780 personnel. I said Fed. 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. There isn't one specific cause behind the fires, Boyd said. But the last one, issued at 7 a.m. EST on Sunday by Eric Holweg, did predict strong winds. I turned on tv to see if there were warnings of any sort. They will be touched in their heart as deeply as anyone who has lost in the tragedy itself. One person was found dead Sunday. Travelers are urged to avoid the area at this time. I could not figure how to put pictures on Wildfire Today, so here are links to let you see whats happened in the Park. Join our group. In all the Disasters I have worked in Texas, FEMA reimburse City or County for debris pickup. The fire did not get up the valley to the Alum Cave Parking Lot, and LeConte Lodge is fine. I hope they end up being involved in the biggest lawsuit anyone has ever seen! Though the drought and winds were undoubtedly an act of God (Psalms 148:8; 1st Kings 17:1), NPS and other officials were not left ignorant. We listened to local TV news at home which reported voluntary evacuations for Mynatt Park after fire was reported in the Twin Creeks area. Investigators have determined that the fire was human-caused and are asking for information from anyone who has information about people or vehicles that were seen in the area that day. On November 27 the fire was a third of a mileas the crow flies from US Highway 441. When maintenance employees with GRSM drove past the Chimney Tops 2 Fire early Mondaymorning they saw that the intensity and rate of spread of the fire had increased dramatically. I had concerns about traffic once we got down there. State charges dropped in Gatlinburg fires - Smoky Mountain News Here again, more of a horse and pony show from all officials both state and federal. It works like an Amber Alert to people who download the app and sign up. January 4, 2017 at 5:26 pm I certainly agree there are definitely consequences for our actions, for some more than others. They got info from NPS about the fire spreading. Fire kills 1, destroys businesses in downtown Gatlinburg, Tenn There were and continue to be many deaths and fires that occurred in those western areas, and with those IMT expert Teams, that taught hard lessons, and enabled those people to gain experience and become the so called experts in the field. Being asleep at the wheel is no excuse. Nearby businesses feel the same. We had hiked to the Chimneys for the view many times it was easy to see the wind being funneled down from there to Gatlinburg just like an invisible whitewater river. People in our country must get this, because for all the overwhelming issues in our country today, they keep voting many of the same politicians back into office over and over and over again expecting a different outcome. I called Bob back and told him I was leaving hurriedly and that I would call him when we had made it out of woods to Pigeon Forge. Our responses to this fire event have included comments with blame and fault-finding as well as a suggestion that we investigate in order to learn for future decision-making. The fire was south of Gatlinburg. Accountability! I spent two weeks in the area after the fire to inspect my property and ascertain where my wife and I would go from there. If you had transposed the same fire with similar conditions to California or Idaho would it have been managed the same way? For folks afflicted by this tragedy, emotions running high should be expected; and it is understandable for Kelly Morgan to be upset. Was the fire that inaccessible on foot? Under ideal conditions they can temporarily slow the spread, which may be effective if firefighters on the ground can move in quickly totake advantage of the short termchange in fire behavior by constructing firelines, stopping the spread at that location. We had loaded dog and Abram in car, out of smoke and told them to stay put. Enter your email address to subscribe and receive notifications of new articles by email. The steepness here is epic, the only way out of valleys this steep is straight down or up, your lucky not to hit a waterfall. The Park Superintendent did not want to risk the lives of NPS fire crews with the Chimney Tops Fire 2; and that is to be respected. One or two of those employees fall to their death because they shouldnt have been there in the first place. Praying for those residents that have it far worse than I. Click here. There are A lot of cheap seats in the arena filled with people who never venture onto the floor. The governors promised investigation has yet to appear (if it ever will), but the National Parks investigation is proceeding and no locals are on that team. We were there on Thanksgiving week-end. They didnt for one reason in my humble opinion: $$$ According to a news release dated Nov. 25 from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park Public Affairs Office, the fires started on Chimney Tops Trail a few miles south of Gatlinburg, off U.S. 441 . All without the but why reflection, cause and effect analysis, drill down technique and the inter-relationship effect. This is what happened with a handful of officials/personnel regarding the fatal 2000 black bear mauling of a woman hiker in Elkmont. By NPS rules a watch should have been kept on the fire overnight Sunday, but such did not happen. During the investigation, fire officials interviewed a cleaner of Loco Burro who saw a person matching Bates description the morning of the fire. For the availability of resources our local volunteer departments are doing a good job, but things are changing and we need to get out of the boxes we are in, and start critical thinking and creatively to meet the challenges of the future because they are rapidly descending upon us whether we like it or not. Hasnt anyone noticed that friends groups are paying for major park infrastructure and various other projects that our Congress has failed to provide for?
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