Officials are defending their emergency response to wildfires

He added that power outages and limited cellphone reception prevented that alert from reaching some people, while wildfires were ravaging the area.

The three firefighters were initially called to go to Clayton, Georgia, but ended up responding to a blaze in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, Kern said.

“To see it all gone is just really heartbreaking”, evacuee Claire Brandau said.

A Tri-State grad who now lives in Tennessee is frantically looking for his wife and two daughters. They got out and ran and became separated from their parents. “Together, with the Holy Spirit, we can overcome anything”, Bishop Stika said.

According to officials, 85 have been treated from various injuries and many of them have been released from the hospital.

She says The Dollywood Company and The Dollywood Foundation are establishing the My People Fund, which will provide $1,000 monthly to Sevier County families who lost their homes.

In communities near Gatlinburg, there were signs of normalcy. The city is only allowing those people in and that is through a manned, access point near City Hall. The park alerted Gatlinburg and Sevier County officials to be on the lookout. “If you are not instructed to evacuate, please stay off the roads”. Many people have been evacuated from their homes, while others lost their homes and everything they own. He credited their survival to rain that fell during the night. At least 700 buildings have destroyed in what is being called the worst wildfire disaster in Tennessee in a century.

Emergency officials have described the wildfire as a “perfect storm” that grew exponentially in a rare mix of low humidity, drought conditions and erratic winds that suddenly doubled in speed to produce hurricane-force gusts up to 87 miles per hour. The fire started near the end of a popular hiking trail, where people visit nearly every day. Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker, R-Tenn., Waters said the National Guard and other emergency services personnel continue to search through some of more than 1,000 buildings destroyed or damaged in the fire.

“When we woke up Monday morning, we knew something was off because the view outside of the cabin was really smoky and foggy and it was an orange color”, Derek Wells said.

The city has divided up areas into four zones to search for victims.

Fire officials said the damage total includes about 300 buildings inside the Gatlinburg city limits and another 400 in neighboring Pigeon Forge and outlying unincorporated communities. The winds blew embers in all directions, which led to the large fire.

The devastation that the wildfires in Gatlinburg, Tennessee have caused has clearly taken a toll on everyone, including the fearless men and women who are trying to contain the fires. Whether they were received is hard to know. “It started with boots on the ground”. Side streets will reopen later, she said.

Mandatory evacuation orders remained in effect for some 14,000 people in and around Gatlinburg, along with a dusk-to-dawn curfew for the city, known as the “gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains”. Those wishing to report missing individuals believed to be in the affected areas of Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and Wears Valley may contact 1-800-TBI-FIND.

U.S. Senator Bob Corker said it has been a tough two weeks for Tennessee with the school bus tragedy in Chattanooga then tornadoes striking in McMinn County just a day after historic fires spread destruction across Sevier County.