Gatlinburg fire: Restaurants, gift shops a ‘total loss’
A Sunday morning fire in downtown Gatlinburg destroyed several restaurant and gift shops, officials said.
Puckers Sports Bar, Café 420, China Bazaar, Gifts of Gatlinburg and Town Center Place were impacted by the fire. All of the businesses are located at the 700 block of the Parkway in downtown Gatlinburg. Several of the businesses have burned to the ground and are a “total loss,” according to WATE.
No injuries have been reported.
Fire departments remained on the scene throughout Sunday to put out hot spots from the blaze. The owner of the damaged structure that houses the businesses has a contractor enroute to the scene to demolish the damaged portions of the building.
According to a press release from the city, the Parkway in downtown Gatlinburg remains closed between the intersection at Traffic Light No. 6 to the intersection at Reagan Drive. It will remain shutdown until the demolition is complete.
Downtown Gatlinburg sidewalks are open, except for northbound sidewalk detoured behind Ole Smoky Candy Kitchen. The southbound sidewalk is closed between Johnny Rockets and The Gatlinburg Inn.
The Historic Gatlinburg Inn, located next to the businesses that burned, was not damaged, according to a Facebook post from the owners.
People traveling to and from Great Smoky Mountains National Park are asked to use the Gatlinburg Bypass. Travel in the immediate area of the fire is not recommended at this time, however. If individuals need to access the downtown Gatlinburg area, they should use River Road and Cherokee Orchard Road.