Local

Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials closed the Spence Field Backcountry Shelter after 49-year-old Bradley Veeder of Las Vegas was bitten by a bear while sleeping in his tent near the shelter. On Tuesday, May 10, 2016 at approximately 11:16 p.m., the park was notified through Graham County 911 services that Veeder, an Appalachian Trail thru-hiker, was bitten by a ...

Sevierville police located and arrested a man and a woman at a local hotel who were wanted by New York authorities yesterday. Detective Ray Brown and Detective Kevin Bush of the Sevierville Police Department learned on Tuesday, May 10, 2016 that Anthony Strangis, 35, of Fairhaven, Mass. and 43-year old Sarma Melngailas of New York were wanted on fugitive from ...

Park officials say a collision between a motorcycle and a pickup truck resulted in a fatality this afternoon. Great Smoky Mountains National Park Rangers and Rural Metro Ambulance Service responded to a report of an accident on Little River Gorge Road about 1.5 miles west of the Sinks at 1:04 p.m. on Wednesday, May 11, 2016. The collision involved a ...

A desk clerk at a local hotel may have saved lives early this morning by calling 911 and rousing residents to alert them to fire that destroyed a garage structure and may have severely injured one person. Pigeon Forge and Sevierville fire departments responded to a structure fire just off the Parkway of a detached garage at 1922 S. Center ...

An event to honor Sevierville’s dedication to management of public trees and Tree City USA designation will feature historical presentations, speeches by local officials, music and free seedlings. The City of Sevierville Trees/Trails and Beautification Board will celebrate its 32nd year as a Tree City USA with a celebration beginning at 12 p.m. on Friday, May 13, 2016 at the ...

UPDATED THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2016 Carlie Trent has been found and Gary Simpson is in custody. Read about Carlie’s rescue here. UPDATED WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016 More than 1,200 tips have poured in to law enforcement since Gary Simpson removed Carlie Trent from school on May 4, 2016 and fled with her. TBI Agents and Intelligence Analysts have worked to ...

The need for more affordable housing in Sevier County will be the focus of a public discussion this week at the King Family Library. Dick Wellons, director of Smoky Mountain Area Rescue Ministries, will be the guest speaker on the topic of affordable housing at a meeting at 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 5, 2016 in the Birchfield Room of ...

Volunteers are needed to clean up a distressed property in Sevier County that has been selected for Project Restore. Keep Sevier Beautiful is looking for volunteers for a Project Restore event 8 a.m.–4 p.m. on Friday, May 13, 2015. They will be helping a Sevier County resident clean up a property that has become an illegal dumpsite. All volunteers will ...

A new National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 10,712,673 visitors to Great Smoky Mountains National Park in 2015 spent $873,886,500 in communities near the park. That spending supported 13,709 jobs in the local area. National park tourism is a significant driver in the national economy, returning $10 for every $1 invested in the National Park Service. “In 2015, over ...

A search is underway for the body of a man who drowned at Abrams Falls in Great Smoky Mountains National Park this afternoon. According to park spokesperson Dana Soehn, personnel were notified just after 1 p.m. on Thursday, April 28, 2016 that 58-year-old Jitendra Patel, of Roswell, Ga., was hiking with a group of friends when he slipped into the ...