The Gatlinburg fire has been several years ago and many have forgotten it. We however think about it every time we return to the city and even more at Treetops resort. I wrote two post about the fire and our adventures during it, but for some reason I never told about the next day.
We woke up the next day to find that our clothes from the night before smelled like smoke and had ash on them. We cleaned up and went to eat at IHOP. After eating we decided to drive back to Gatlinburg and if possible to Treetops. The night before we had gotten most of our things loaded into the car, but we had left all the food we had bought for the week and possibly other things we could have over looked. As we drove toward Roaring Fork Road, we saw a lot of the destruction caused by the fire.
Roaring Fork Road
At last we arrived at Treetops. Looking across the creek we saw what the Gatlinburg Fire had done to the resort that we loved.
The Day After
The photo above was our first good view of the resort. We felt better about our decision to get out after seeing this. Treetops appeared to be destroyed.
Gatlinburg Fire
A couple of months later we returned to Gatlinburg and Treetops to see how things were going. We drove across the bridge and got this next photo.
The room we were in
The room we were staying in, at the time of the Gatlinburg Fire, was the top floor behind the two men. I get an odd feeling wondering what would have happened had the fire been three hours latter when everyone was asleep. It was bad but we have gone back every year. This year we went the first week of December and stayed at Treetops. Finally here are a couple of happier photos to end on.
Tree Tops Resort has always been such a wonderful place for us to visit. When we left it Monday morning 28th of November, we never realized it would be the last time we would see it in the light of day. We spent the day shopping and returned to Tree Tops at about 6:30p.m.
Monday morning look out of our unit
When we arrived, several people were packing their cars and leaving the Resort. We walked up to the office to see if we needed to be alarmed. The ladies at the front desk assured us that Tree Tops was safe and should anything change we would be notified.
We went to our room and was relaxing when alarms started to go off at 8:39. We called the front desk and was told the smoke had set off alarms in some areas but the units were safe. After listening to the alarms for some time we decided to be on the safe side and packed everything. I got a couple of suitcases and carried them down to the car. As I was putting them in the car I saw fire against building four. I moved the car closer to the elevator and stairwell then went back to the room and told my wife we needed to leave. We grabbed all that we could carry and hurried to the car.
After loading the car we pulled across the bridge and joined a line of traffic moving very slow. I noticed cars were moving both ways which seemed strange until one stopped beside me and explained. “There is a wall of fire down there. A car is stuck in the ditch. Everyone is turning and coming back.”
Picture shows where car was in ditch
We continued on until we came to the stuck car and I could see the wall of fire. The fire had crossed the road and houses were burning on both sides. Like everyone else, we turned around and drove back to the resort. By this time, the smoke was terrible and the fire was getting worse. No one knew what to do.
I thought of several things, but none of them were good. I finally decided that the road itself would not be on fire and unless burning objects had fallen onto it, I might be able to drive through the fire. Stupid I know, but it seemed better than any other idea. I drove back down the road passed the stuck car toward the fire. As I got nearer, I could see a gap in the flames where the road was.
Those familiar with the road know how close the cabins and the creek are to the road. As I drove, the smoke became much worse. Using the fires as a guide, I tried to stay to the left because I could not see the road or creek. We could feel the heat and I worried what the car would look like when we got through. We ran over several things, but made it through by the grace of God.
We turned left on 321, thinking we could drive into Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge and find a room for the night. When we arrived at the intersection in Gatlinburg the police were blocking the road. The officer told us he advised against trying to find a place in Gatlinburg and informed us that the road between Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge was closed due to the fires.
Following his advice, we turned around and took 321 to Cosby. This however was not that easy. We saw fires burning on both sides of the road and firefighters and utility company workers often had to remove fallen trees from the road to keep us going. At about midnight we arrived at a hotel in Sevierville.
All that was left to do was to thank God for our safety and for His guidance as we drove through the flames. We also thank God for those men and women who unlike us journey toward the flames to help and aide others.
