UPDATE Monday, 5:58 p.m.
Officials have determined a timeline for residents and businesses to return to their homes. Property owners, business owners, renters and lease holders will continue to be able to access properties for cleaning, smoke removal and securing their properties on Tuesday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. through the East Parkway entry point.
On Wednesday, property owners, business owners, renters and lease holders will be allowed to return to full-time occupancy beginning at 7 a.m. through the East Parkway access point. The curfew will change from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. on both Wednesday and Thursday.
The city of Gatlinburg plans to reopen for business and to the general public on Friday at 7 a.m. Major roadways are expected to be open, but some may remain closed to accommodate utility work. Wiley Oakley Drive and Cliff Branch Road remain inaccessible due to critical utility work. Utility work on Greystone Heights Road has been completed and will be open on Tuesday.
The number of damaged or destroyed structures has risen to 1,753.
GATLINBURG (WATE) – Officials in Sevier County say the death toll has now reached 14 in the fires in Gatlinburg and the county. Twelve people died in the fire, a 13th person died from a heart attack while trying to flee the fires and a 14th person died in a car accident while trying to evacuate.
Of the fourteen deaths, 12 victims have been identified. Those victims are:
Elaine Brown, 81
Alice Hagler, 70
Constance Reed, 34
Lily Reed, 9
Chloe Reed, 12
Jon Summers, 61
Janet Summers, 61
Reverand Ed Taylor, 85
John Tegler, 71
Marilyn Tegler, 70
May Vance, 75
Bradley Phillips, 59
More details: Victims identified in Sevier County wildfires
There are 134 injuries related to the fire, according to the National Park Service. Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters said the entire area was soft-searched by Friday evening.
“This does not mean that the search is complete. We will continue to search everywhere we can and we are working with the TBI for areas we need to search,” said Waters.
Waters said TBI is continuing to follow-up on leads for missing persons. He said there are currently 1,684 structures damaged in Sevier County.
Property owners, business owners, renter and lease holders will continue to have daily access to properties from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The curfew remains in effect from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.
People are reminded to bring valid forms of identification showing their name and address of their residence or business inside Gatlinburg. Officials will verify renters and lease holders as needed.
The Spur parkway is open only from Pigeon Forge to the Gatlinburg Welcome Center. Thre will be no access to Wiley Oakley from the Spur. Wiley Oakley Drive and Greystone Heights Road remain inaccessible due to critical utility work. Emergency crews are working to open it as soon as possible.
The water boil advisory is still in effect for Gatlinburg, with the exception of the areas east of the Gatlinburg City Hall.
Gov. Bill Haslam said this is the largest fire in 100 years in Tennessee. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) is working to help determine the origin of the fire. ATF Agent Michael Knight said the agency was called in overnight to help with the investigation. He says the investigation is in its initial stages and will take several days.
Governor Bill Haslam said insurance companies are set up at the Boyds Bear so that homeowners and business owners can make claims. Supplies, including toiletries, clothes, food and water are available for those who need them at that location from 9 to 6 on Saturday and 1 to 6 on Sunday.
Gatlinburg city administrators said any mobile device in Gatlinburg got emergency notice about fire at 9:04 pm Monday. The National Weather Service says no mobile alert went out. Leaders said they are looking into why some people didn’t get alerts and examining their evacuation procedures.
The cause of the fire near the summit on Chimney Tops appears to be human caused, according to the park. The park is asking for assistance from the public to gather information.
“If you or someone you know hiked the Chimney Tops Trail on Wednesday, November 23, please contact the investigative team. By answering a few questions, you can help provide much-needed information,” said the park in a statement.
Missing people
Officials say they have developed a number of leads that have resulted in missing persons being found. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has established a hotline to coordinate reports of missing persons in the areas affected by the recent wildfires in East Tennessee. 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.
Related: TBI establishes hotline for missing people in Sevier County
“Since our hotline has been established yesterday morning, we received 100 phone calls,” said an agent from TBI in a statement. “We are following up on approximately 70 leads.”
The city has divided up areas into four zones to search for victims.
Zone 1 (Ski Mountain Area) – 80 percent complete
Zone 2 (Chalet Village) – 90 percent complete
Zone 3 (Downtown area) and 4 (Eastern corridor) – Searched
Oats said the goal is to have all zones searched by Thursday night. Animal control and other officers are also checking on displaced animals. The county is asking pet owners to provide names and specific addresses of the animals to the Sevier County Humane Society Facebook page.
Investigating burned property
All roads will be open in the fire-damaged areas to property owners from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. beginning Friday, except Beech Branch Road, Walker Trail Road and Wiley Oakley Road. Those roads are expected to be available to property owners beginning Saturday afternoon. People must be able to prove they are property owners, leasers or renters. This also applies to tourists who would like to retrieve belongings they left behind. Officials will work with business owners to confirm that people were staying at their lodging businesses.
Related: Limited access to owners, renters in Gatlinburg, Sevier County beginning Friday
If all goes well, the access will remain open through Tuesday. There will be one entry station at the East Parkway near Gatlinburg City Hall and can only be reached by Glades Road. There may be areas with active utility workers and first responders and people should be prepared for delays and finding alternate routes.
Structures may not be safe. The city is not implying such by allowing access. Homeowners may bring insurance adjusters with them. The current goal is to reopen downtown Parkway, River Road and Airport Road on Wednesday to the general public.
Mayor Waters says all the fires are extinguished in the county and city, but some hot spots remain. The fire has burned more than 17,000 acres in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and remains only 10 percent contained there.
More Wildfire Coverage
“Don’t let the numbers deceive you. In some areas there is nothing left,” said Gatlinburg Fire Chief Greg Miller. “Some of these structures, there’s nothing left… to search it much further would take forensics based process.”
Beech Branch, Walker Trail and Wiley Oakley Drive are expected to be open by noon Saturday for property owners and renters to inspect their properties and what’s left of them.
Shelters
Evacuations began Monday night in Gatlinburg and eventually spread to parts of Pigeon Forge. The Pigeon Forge evacuation was lifted the following day, but Gatlinburg west of the post office remains evacuated. TEMA estimates more than 14,000 residents and visitors evacuated.
Sixteen people are staying in the Pigeon Forge Community Center while 250 people are staying at Rocky Top Sports World, both of which are Red Cross shelters.
More: How to help: Smoky Mountain fire evacuees
Barker Lounge is open for dogs and Douglas Lakeview Stables at 1650 Providence Road in Sevierville is taking in livestock. A number of other places opened their doors to evacuees but have either closed or people are no longer using their services.
Sevier County Schools will be open Friday except for Pi Beta Phi Elementary and Gatlinburg-Pittman High School. Faculty is to report at regular time at both schools.
Cocke County Schools will be on a regular schedule the rest of the week except for Smoky Mountain Elementary. That school will be closed for the remainder of the week.
National and state response
Gov. Bill Haslam has issued an executive order suspending certain state laws in order to ensure wildfire and severe weather disaster survivors have access to important health care services, consumer rights protections, and availability of state services as they recover.
The White House says President Obama has called Gov. Haslam Wednesday night to express his concern and support about the fires in Gatlinburg.
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