Gatlinburg Fire Survivors Making Appeals

The survivors who lost family members in the Gatlinburg Fires are now appealing a judges decision to dismiss their lawsuit but let insurance companies lawsuits continue. Their attorneys filed documents in court Wednesday claiming that the judge’s decision was flawed.

Last month judge Ronnie Greer stated that federal attorneys didn’t have subject matter jurisdiction over the lawsuits filed by individuals and the individual plaintiffs made a mistake by not including a “failure to warn” provision in their original complaints…which was that the National Park Service failed to provide “timely and accurate notice and warning” about the status of the Chimney Top 2 fire to the public.

The survivors’ lawyers claim they have discovered evidence that notice was given to the federal government ahead of time. Greer also wrote in his decision that specific pieces of information were missing from the forms submitted to claim damage, injury or death. Lawyers representing the victims claim the government originally told them those forms were “sufficient” as submitted.

Fourteen people were killed when winds swept those wildfires into Gatlinburg on November 29, 2016.