The death brings the number of people killed to four in the blaze that destroyed more than 150 homes and businesses as flames whipped by high-speed winds raged through town Monday night into Tuesday morning and displaced more than 14,000 residents in an inferno witnesses called unlike any in the past century. It’s the latest destruction by wildfires that officials estimate have consumed more than 15,000 acres in the Great Smoky Mountains.
A firefighter was also hurt fighting the blaze, Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters said. The search continues for others who might have been killed or injured but not discovered due to blocked roads and power outages.
Authorities have not given the identities of those killed, who died in “separate incidents.” The three were found in North Chalet Village, and the fourth was found in a hotel room off U.S. Highway 321.
“We are trying to get into every area,” Waters said. “Those efforts will continue today.”
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has set up a hotline at 800-TBI-FIND to help with the search for missing people.
Eight new fires erupted Tuesday into Wednesday, Gatlinburg Fire Chief Greg Miller said. The heavy rains that followed the fires have created “new challenges” as firefighters continue to check hot spots and assess damages.
“We’re experiencing small rockslides and mudslides as we have to go back into areas we previously thought were accessible,” the chief said.
The blaze apparently began when embers from a wildfire on nearby Chimney Tops Trail in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park wafted into the Twin Creek and Mynatt Park areas of town Monday night as the already heavy winds doubled in speed, the fire chief said. The resulting flames swept through Gatlinburg in less than a quarter-hour, fanned by winds at speeds that approached 90 mph.
At least 14 people suffered fire-related injuries, four of them serious.
More than 14,000 people had been forced to leave Gatlinburg alone, and about 500 from Pigeon Forge, officials estimated. More than 2,000 people had been taken to emergency shelters.
Ken Lewis, manager of Red Cross shelter at Rocky Top Sports World in Gatlinburg, said Wednesday morning that there were 200 people at the shelter, down from a peak of 700 on Tuesday.
Lewis said a lot of evacuees have been able to connect with friends and family and find a place to stay.
Inside the shelter there are stacks of food, bottled water, personal hygiene items and diapers. Local restaurants have donated hot prepared food as well.
The shelter also has an abundance of pet food and pet supplies.
“We had trucks and supplies coming in all day long,” Lewis said.
He said right now it’s to the point that the shelter has too much and they’re trying to channel some of the items back into the community.
“If people want to help, we’ve got everything we need right now,” Lewis said.
He recommended people make donations to the Red Cross or other local community agencies that are assisting people.
“That’d be the best thing to help right now,” Lewis said.
News of the fires has brought condolences and offers of support pouring into East Tennessee from around the country, including from President-elect Donald Trump and former Vice President and onetime Tennessee senator Al Gore.
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