The November 2016 fire that ravaged Gatlinburg, Tennessee, started with kids and matches in the Great Smoky Mountains surrounding the town. With dry conditions and winds running strong, the kids chucked matches and rolled burning tires downhill. The wind picked up to fuel the fire, and from there the devastation spread rapidly.
As the firefighters knew when hurrying to the scene, extinguishing flames in mountains as tall as 6,000 feet is nearly impossible. Many homes were burned to the foundation. The grim results show just how monumental of a task they faced:
- 14 people died in the fire or from fleeing the fire.
- More than 17,000 acres burned, damaging or destroying nearly 2,500 structures.
- Nearly 4,000 insurance claims were filed.
- The combined residential and commercial property loss came to nearly $850 million.
One of the service providers on site responding to assist policyholders was Enservio's Service on Site (SOS) team. We provide boots-on-the-ground claims services for carriers that need additional resources to evaluate and inventory property contents losses in catastrophic areas. In trying to help people cope with high levels of tragedy and total loss of property, we strive to establish personal connections with policyholders.
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