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Mountain strong: One month after historic fire, Gatlinburg rebuilding

Destroyed structures are pictured along Cherokee Orchard Road on Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2016, in Gatlinburg. The wildfires killed 12 people. One more died of a heart attack and another in a vehicle accident fleeing the blaze. A total of 191 were treated for injuries suffered. More than 2,460 structures were damaged or destroyed. (Paul Efird/Knoxville News Sentinel)
Destroyed structures are pictured along Cherokee Orchard Road on Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2016, in Gatlinburg. The wildfires killed 12 people. One more died of a heart attack and another in a vehicle accident fleeing the blaze. A total of 191 were treated for injuries suffered. More than 2,460 structures were damaged or destroyed. (Paul Efird/Knoxville News Sentinel) Destroyed structures are pictured along Cherokee Orchard Road on Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2016, in Gatlinburg. The wildfires killed 12 people. One more died of a heart attack and another in a vehicle accident fleeing the blaze. A total of 191 were treated for injuries suffered. More than 2,460 structures were damaged or destroyed. (Paul Efird/Knoxville News Sentinel)

By The Knoxville News Sentinel 1 min read

GATLINBURG, Tenn. – A month after a devastating fire roared through his county, Larry Waters still has had little time to reflect on it all.

“Never in my wildest dreams, I never imagined having to deal with a disaster of this magnitude,” said the Sevier County mayor.

Gatlinburg resident Ernest Ogle, 74, put the night of Nov. 28 more succinctly: “It was terrible.”

Read more at our news partner’s website, knoxnews.com.