A quick and coordinated response by the Greeneville Fire Department and multiple Greene County Volunteer Fire Departments prevented a fast-moving fire from spreading to nearby homes Tuesday evening, despite wind gusts reaching 50 mph.
The fire broke out around 5 p.m. in a mobile home on Whirlwind Road. By the time Greeneville firefighters arrived, the residence was fully engulfed. Greeneville Fire Chief Alan Shipley said strong winds fanned the flames, creating what he described as a “fire tornado” and spreading embers into the surrounding wooded area.
Shipley said the fire spread several hundred feet at a time, jumping through the woods and making containment the main priority.
The flames quickly spread to a wooded area behind the mobile home, setting fire to dry brush and trees, some reaching 50 feet in height. Embers carried by high winds ignited new fires, pushing the blaze toward other nearby homes, including one belonging to Jim Bird on Ell Street. Firefighters arrived just as flames reached the edge of a sage grass field behind Bird’s house.
Shipley said that if firefighters hadn’t arrived when they did, the fire could have spread across the field and threatened homes behind Hardin Park on Magnolia Drive.
The Tennessee Division of Forestry deployed a bulldozer and personnel to create fire breaks, using a trail in the woods as a natural barrier. Firefighters also set controlled backfires to limit the blaze’s spread. The combination of high winds and extremely low humidity levels prompted a Red Flag Warning from the National Weather Service, indicating an increased fire risk.
Tusculum Fire Chief Marty Shelton said his department responded with tankers and brush trucks, initially prepared to shuttle water to the mobile home fire but quickly shifting focus to containing the expanding woods fire.
Shipley said nearly 50 firefighters from Greeneville were called in, including off-duty personnel, and additional crews were brought in to backfill stations in case of other emergencies. The Greeneville Public Works Department also brought in equipment to help remove debris from the burned mobile home so firefighters could get water on hot spots and prevent further spread.
Firefighters remained on scene overnight to monitor for flare-ups and prevent rekindling.
Winds were expected to increase throughout the night, but rainfall just before daybreak was expected to improve conditions and help prevent further spread.
Greene County 911 also dispatched departments from the Camp Creek, South Greene, and Debusk Rehab Units, along with Limestone Volunteer Fire Department, EMS, Greeneville Energy Authority, Greeneville Public Works and Greene County Chaplain Danny Ricker.
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