No Rain in the South East for Months!

[Tnstratofam]

I just heard from SigSairP229 ( Nick ) He and his family are safe. Their home is 2 miles from the evacuation line, and he said that at one point there were 8 fires around them.

Lots of folks homeless and without jobs now. Both Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge Tn as well as Sevier county will have a tough road to rebuild, but we're a pretty resilient bunch of folks here in the Volunteer State.

 

[jbcurt00]

Thanks Dave, glad he and his family have been safe so far. Hope it stays that way.

 

[Tnstratofam]

Thanks Dave, glad he and his family have been safe so far. Hope it stays that way.

Yeah I'm glad they're safe, and hopefully the fires that remain can be brought under control before they getvany closer to them.

More rain is in the forecast for Sunday and Monday, but it will have to rain allot to pull us out of this drought.

 

[southkogs]

News reports all day have been rough to listen to. Hope the rain is helping.

 

[southkogs]

7 dead in Sevier County as of this morning. Over 700 structures damaged or destroyed ... 300 in Gatlinburg. The original fire that stoked the rest of the deal is still going on Chimney Top about 10% contained. From some news reports the smoke was smelled in Southern Michigan. Right around 14,000 folks displaced from their homes in the area.

On the up side, the recovery efforts have already started - and Dolly Parton is heading up a relief effort to fund the families who are affected. She's a neat lady with a neat organization.

The last three days dumped 2.5" of rain on us (here in the Middle State). Not sure the exact amount in the East State, but hope what they did get is helping it out.

 

[aspeck]

Saw where Dolly Parton started the fund. Lot's of businesses to recover. Saw the Alamo Steak House burnt to the ground ... enjoyed eating there. Several shops and places we have stayed are destroyed. So sad, and to learn that it was probably a man-made fire from one of the hikers on a trail is even more disheartening. People need to be more careful in the woods.

 

[gm280]

aspeck it is sad when such fires are started over careless actions. We had an entire hotel burn to the ground because a smoker went outside to smoke and instead of throwing the cigarette butt in the butt can that were in multiple places around the outside, he or she threw it in the shrubbery bed. It caught fire and burnt the entire multi-story hotel down. It never was rebuilt again, and they never caught the smoker either!

 

[southkogs]

Death toll up to 13 in the Gatlinburg area - lots of hurt and recovery to go.

The good news is that locally we're hearing that Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg should be back open next week and ready to have folks come visit. Dolly Parton is doing some amazing stuff for recovery and things are starting to turn and folks are starting to pick up.

 

[RGrew176]

I was online last night checking out stories of the wildfires. I read that Treetops Resort in Gatlinburg was destroyed. Sad, I stayed there Christmas week back in 2009. It was a nice place.

 

[Tnstratofam]

I take the Admiral down for her birthday every January. This year I'm hoping we can spend an extra few days helping with cleanup and giving back to a community that has lost so much.

 

[aspeck]

http://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/...-daughters-still-missing-after-fire/94891978/

Such a sad story ...

 

[WIMUSKY]

Sad indeed. I knew the mother had passed had no idea about the kids.....Prayers....

 

[gm280]

I can't even imagine being faced with such news. Condolences and prayer for the family and friends.

 

[sphelps]

Raining pretty hard down here today ..

 

[gm280]

Raining pretty hard down here today ..

Yea we have been getting rain pretty steadily as well. But we really really do need it. We will not get enough to wipe out our deficit, but every little bit helps.

 

[southkogs]

Good rain beating away at TN right now. We've gotten about 4" since the 28th by me.

Gatlinburg reopens to the public on Friday. Population of Gatlinburg proper is about 4,600. The county has reported 1,700 structures damaged or destroyed by the fire. Pretty amazing.