3 more bodies found in Tennessee wildfire ruins, toll at 7

Search-and-rescue missions continued, and Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters said they had found three people who had been trapped since the fires started spreading wildly in high winds on Monday night. The mayor said the three were OK.

"That is some good, positive news for a change," Waters said.

The mayor said authorities are still working to identify the dead and did not release any details about how they were killed. State law enforcement set up a hotline for people to report missing friends and family. Officials have not said how many people they believe are missing.

Gatlinburg Police Chief Randall Brackins said they have searched about 30 percent or less of the city so far.

More than 14,000 people were evacuated from Gatlinburg on Monday night, and many of them are still nervously awaiting word of when they can get back in the city to see if they still have homes.

Rebecca Bell, who has lived in Gatlinburg for 28 years, said her neighbors notified her that her house and car were gone.

"They were able to gain access before we did, and they basically called and said that they were really sorry, but they were pretty sure, based on the address and description of the cars that were left, that we didn't have anything," Bell said.

Still, she said she feels fortunate because she has a place to stay, and friends have provided her with clothes.

"The hardest part for me is the children in the area that I know were affected by some of the hotel fires. That's where they stayed, and that's what they knew as home."

Ten-year-old Kayleen Sierra is among those hotel dwellers who is now homeless.

"We don't have a house, and we don't have any work. My mom won't work, and my dad," said Kayleen, whose family has moved in with friends temporarily.

"I'm scared that the whole building might fall down, and we have nowhere to live," she said.

Buddy McLean said he watched Monday from a deserted Gatlinburg street as flames surrounded his 26-acre hotel nestled in the mountains.

His grandfather bought the land in 1945, and he developed a subdivision on part of it and built The Lodge at Buckberry Creek about 14 years ago on the mountainside to take advantage of the views of Mount LeConte.

McLean said four rooms were booked and another 15 people were having a private dinner when the hotel's chef and event coordinator told everyone to evacuate. McLean said he has not seen the property yet.

"I have 35 employees," McLean said. "All of them lost their jobs overnight."

Storms moved through the area as part of a system ravaging the Southeast, spawning suspected tornadoes in parts of Alabama and Tennessee, killing five people and injuring more than a dozen.

Officials in the Gatlinburg area were worried about mudslides, rock slides and high winds knocking trees onto power lines, perhaps creating new fires similar to the deadly ones that sparked Monday night.

More fires broke out in Gatlinburg overnight, but rains offered some relief. Most of those fires had been contained.

The Rocky Top Sports World complex on the outskirts of town was serving as a shelter.

Wolf McLellan stumbled into the facility after a day of wandering the streets. He was forced to evacuate a motel where he was staying. He grabbed his guitar, two computers and his Social Security card and tried to flee with his dog, Kylie.

"She was too scared to move with the smoke and sirens and she just stood there. I didn't want to drag her. I couldn't drag her," he said. "I figured the humane thing to do would be to just cut her loose."

Officials in nearby Pigeon Forge lifted the evacuation order there, but the order still stood in Gatlinburg.

Gatlinburg Mayor Mike Werner said officials were discussing reopening the city on Friday so business owners can assess damage and hopefully begin paying their employees again. For now, the city is under a 6 p.m. curfew.

"You really can't let everybody in yet because there are still areas that haven't been searched, there are still areas where electric lines are down, power poles are down," he said. "Search and safety is basically our main goal. We want to get back open as soon as we can."

Almost nothing remained of the Castle, perhaps the largest and most iconic home overlooking Gatlinburg. Entire churches disappeared, and the flames reached the doorstep of Dollywood, the theme park named after country music legend and local hero Dolly Parton. But the park was spared any significant damage and will reopen Friday.

Much remained uncertain for a region that serves as the gateway into the Great Smoky Mountains, the country's most visited national park.