Gatlinburg Getting Smoke From NC Wildfires

If you work in Gatlinburg or other parts of Sevier County, you may have smelled or seen smoke. In fact, numerous calls came into 911 in Sevier County yesterday reporting smoke in the area. However, there is no wildfire in Sevier County accounting for that smoke. Instead, according to the Sevier County Emergency Management Agency, that smoke is coming from the wildfires currently burning in North Carolina. Large wildfires are currently burning in Jackson County, NC south of Sylva, and another burning in Henderson County. There is also a huge wildfire in the far southwestern part of the state near the Murphy, NC area within the Cherokee National Forest. That wildfire has consumed nearly 4,000 acres and is still 0% contained as of this morning. The winds that were bringing in warm temperatures from the south, were also bringing up the smoke from those wildfires across the national park and into Sevier County.

In East Tennessee the one major fire burning is in Anderson County. That fire is near Rocky Top and has consumed close to 400 acres. The good news is fire crews are reporting that fire is now at 95% containment.