Local Resident Escapes Gatlinburg Fires

December 3, 2016

A beautiful mountain-view Gatlinburg vacation turned into a horrifying drive for local residentJennifer Ness.

An operator at Gulf Power’s Distribution Operations Center, Ness had to evacuate from the wildfires around Gatlinburg which burned more than 700 buildings and killed at least 11 people earlier this week.

Ness evacuated safely to a nearby hotel and returned home on Tuesday. But she lost all the possessions she had taken except her purse.

“It was definitely a horrific experience,” she said Thursday from her  home. “I feel so heartbroken for the community and the people there. It’s just like going through a hurricane and losing everything they have.”

Ness left Sunday to spend a week’s vacation at Westgate Resort, located between Pidgeon Forge and Gatlinburg, where her parents had a timeshare condo. Her best friend, Kathy, was supposed to go, but had to back out so Ness went on her own.

She had never been to the area before and when she arrived late Sunday afternoon, she was amazed at the view.

“The place was amazingly beautiful,” she said. “The condo was incredible and all around the area, they had decorated for the holidays. I was looking forward to sight-seeing and shopping for Christmas.”

But Monday morning, when she went out on the balcony for a cup of coffee, she noticed the smoke. The view was gone and it was hard to breathe.

Ness texted her timeshare host, who told her there was a fire on Chimney Top, a nearby mountain. She instructed Ness to stay indoors until later that Monday afternoon.

Around 2 p.m., she noticed the view had cleared a little, so she went into town, returned to the condo around 6 p.m. and put on her pajamas to settle down for the evening.

Just an hour later, her host called and told her she needed to evacuate.

“She told me to drive as far away as you can,” Ness said. “She reiterated that I need you to leave now. I didn’t realize the extent of how serious it was.”

She put on her clothes, grabbed her purse and got in her vehicle. All four lanes of traffic had been routed to leave town.

The scene on the road was horrific. Embers from the mountain fire had blown down and ignited trees on both sides of the highway. Traffic was bumper-to-bumper and took Ness 45 minutes to get out of the area.

“You could see the flames on the mountain,” she said. “It was an unbelievable site. It seemed like an eternity to get out.”

While she was driving, she called Kathy, who booked her a hotel room in nearby Sevierville. She checked in and then called her family members to let them know she was OK.

Later in the hotel, she saw news video of the resort burning. All that was left standing was an elevator shaft. All her possessions she had brought were gone, including her clothes, a Nikon camera with a zoom lens and her jewelry, including a Pandora bracelet with 24 charms given to her by her children.

The blazes scorched thousands of acres in the resort-heavy area, burning more than 700 buildings in Sevier County, including about 300 in Gatlinburg alone, and injuring at least 74 people, officials said. Ness was one of more than 14,000 tourists and residents that had to be evacuated.

“All the beauty I drove into and then seeing the fires was unbelievable,” she said. “It wasn’t about grabbing my personal belongings. I was thinking about my children, my grandchildren and my mother and to get out safely. It makes you think about the things that are important to you in your life.”

Ness decided to check out of the hotel Tuesday and return  so the hotel room would be available for a displaced family. She will return to work next week.

“With our job at the DCC, we’re always the first ones to respond,” she said. “To be on the opposite side as an evacuee was a place I would never want to be again. When I arrived there, I was so excited to be there and experience what my parents love so much. Now, I’m glad to be home.”

Comments

One Response to “Local Resident Escapes Gatlinburg Fires”

  1. EMD on December 3rd, 2016 1:16 pm

    So glad you made it out.

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under FEATURE TOP STORY, Features, News