Devastated residents return after wildfire destroyed Tennessee city
Death toll at 13; almost 1,000 buildings burned
GATLINBURG, Tenn. — Residents and business owners in Gatlinburg got their first look at the wildfire destruction on Friday, and many walked around the once-bustling tourist city in a daze, sobbing.
They hugged one another and promised that they would stay in touch.
“We love it up here so much,” said Gary Moore, his voice trembling. “We lost everything. But we’re alive, thank goodness. Our neighbors are alive, most of them. And we’re just so thankful for that.”
Anger over evacuation
A county mayor raised the death toll to 13 and said the number of damaged buildings now approached 1,000.
After days of waiting to see their homes, some of the shock began to give way to anger, and local authorities bristled when asked why they waited so long to order the evacuation.
“The city sure could have done a better job of getting us out of here,” said Delbert Wallace, who lost his home. “When they got up that morning, when they seen that fire, we should have been on alert right then.”
Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters and other officials noted the fire moved such a great distance so quickly it gave officials little time to react. Once they did, it was nearly too late.
Waters said it was not the time for “Monday morning quarterbacking” and promised a full review later.
The dead included a Memphis couple who was separated from their three sons during the wildfires. The sons — Jared, Wesley and Branson Summers — learned that their parents, Jon and Janet, had died as they were recovering in the hospital.
Other fatalities included a couple from Canada, 71-year-old Jon and 70-yearold Janet Tegler, and May Vance, who died of a heart attack after she was exposed to smoke. Officials said at a news conference that she was vacationing in Gatlinburg, but an obituary posted online said she was from the area.
Started near hiking trail
Great Smoky Mountains National Park Deputy Superintendent Jordan Clayton said the initial fire started Nov. 23 near the end of a popular hiking trail. Authorities urged anyone who hiked the trial to give them a call.
“Whether it was purposefully set or whether it was a careless act that was not intended to cause a fire, that we don’t know,” Clayton said. “The origin of the fire is under investigation.”