Overview

APPL audio interview with Stacey Adam and Chris Szaton, residents of Gatlinburg, conducted by Karen McDonald. Adam and Szaton discuss the day of the fire and some of the early signs that it was not a typical fire. They recount the safeguards to prepare their home for disaster and potential evacuation. They also discuss the effect the fire had on their neighborhood and the efforts of the community to begin rebuilding.

Overview

Video interview with Michelle Childs, professor with the Retail, Hospitality, and Tourism Management department of UT, conducted by Casey Kaufman. Childs discusses the effects of the wildfire on the businesses in Gatlinburg primarily over an extended time frame. She talks about the preparedness of businesses with contacting employees during the fire and in terms of insurance coverage. She also elaborates on the initial return of tourists to the area, and the steady recovery of the area.

Overview

Video interview with Ann Fairhurst, professor with the Retail, Hospitality, and Tourism Management department at UT, conducted by Casey Kaufman. Fairhurst discusses the prior planning that businesses had for emergencies before the fire. She also elaborates on the effects the fire had on businesses in Gatlinburg both in terms of dealing with insurance and regaining regular tourism patronage.

Overview

Video interview with Russ Jensen, director of 311 and 211 for the city of Knoxville, conducted by Ken Wise. Jensen discusses initially establishing the channels and awareness in the community for these services. He also recounts the role the organization played during the fire in both directing victims to needed resources as well as the incoming donations and volunteers that needed to be properly funneled into necessary roles.

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Video interview with Cindy Ogle, City Manager of Gatlinburg during the wildfire, conducted by Casey Kaufman. Ogle discusses the challenges of serving in an official capacity to combat the fires while also balancing personal concerns. She also recounts the city and community efforts to recover following the destruction.

Overview

Video interview with Anne Smith, Department of Management and Entrepreneurship with the University of Tennessee, conducted by Ken Wise. Smith reviews the report composed by the National Park Service after the wildfires and the structural challenges faced by organizations in a disaster. Conducted over Zoom due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Video interview with Larry Waters, Sevier County Mayor, conducted by Casey Kaufman. Waters provides a brief background about Sevier County and Gatlinburg before discussing the events of the fire. He addresses the needs of a public official during a crisis and how he balanced that with personal concerns for his family. Waters also recounts the efforts following the fire to rebuild the city and bring back the tourism industry.

Overview

Video interview with Paul Wellborn, owner of Ely's Mill in Gatlinburg, conducted by Casey Kaufman. Wellborn recounts his efforts during the fire to help direct traffic out of the town. He also discusses the following days and weeks dealing with city and federal responders to the crisis.

Overview

Video interview with Ruth Wellborn, owner of Ely's Mill in Gatlinburg, conducted by Laura Romans. Wellborn was in the Florida Keys during the day of the fire, and recounts her experience returning home after the disaster. She discusses personal recovery efforts as well as those by the city. She also discusses the feeling of a town that has to rebuild after a wildfire of this magnitude.

Overview APPL audio interview with Paul and Ruth Welborn, owners of Ely's Mill in Gatlinburg, conducted by Kenton Temple and Karen McDonald. Paul tells about the day of the fire and his efforts evacuating tourists unfamiliar with the area. He also discusses the night and following day of the fire in Gatlinburg dealing with emergency responders. Ruth recounts her return from Florida after learning of the fire. She discusses some of the damage done to their property and how they were able to aid...

Overview

Video interview with Mike Werner, Mayor of Gatlinburg, conducted by Ken Wise. Werner discusses the day of the fire, the heavy smoke in the air, and the surprising speed at which the fire reached the city. He also recounts balancing his professional respsonsibilities to Gatlinburg while also managing the loss of his own home in the disaster.

Overview

Video interview with Carey Woods, principal of Pi Beta Phi Elementary School during the wildfire, conducted by Ken Wise. Woods recounts the time leading up to the fire and the decisions she made for students' safety. She also recounts the evacuation of the school to Rocky Top Sports World in response to the severity of the smoke, and the difficulties faced in the following months with relocating students and faculty to different schools.