When he packed his girlfriend and children in the car and drove out of Gatlinburg on a dark and smoky night last November, Allan Rivera never imagined they wouldn't be able to go back home.
After work that day he had his usual cup of coffee and was sitting down to watch a movie with his family. That's when a neighbor knocked on the door and asked if they planned to evacuate.
"I told him, 'Why?' and he said we should evacuate immediately because of the smoke," Rivera said.
He looked outside. Trees were swaying in the wind. Lights were flickering on and off as if the electricity were about to go out. Heavy smoke hung in the air. But Rivera, 30, said he wasn't too worried.