Remembering Rex 18

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It was three years ago plus a few dark hours—Monday, November 28, 2016—that a once contained wildfire in the Smokies was whipped into something more horrific by 87 mph winds. The resulting firestorm roared down out of the mountains and left a scar across 10,000 acres of the national park, plus in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and beyond. Fourteen people died, 134 were injured and many people were left with broken hearts.

Three years ago today, I published a post about the fire not knowing what had been lost. I even wondered about the four preserved cabins at Junglebrook and along Roaring Fork. I am related to all who once lived there. Their DNA is intertwined within my own. 

Unaware of its fate, I included a photo of a log cabin taken by Rex McDaniel. He often went there with his camera in hand. For him, it was a place of great solace, as it is for me. 

Had anything survived? 

Click: Gatlinburg fire storm



Photograph/graphic by his friend Chuck Cooper. 

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