GATLINBURG, Tenn. — A fire in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has grown to approximately 500 acres in size overnight, thanks to strong sustained winds overnight.

The fire has forced the closures of several roads and trails in the nation’s most  visited national park and is now beginning to pose a threat to the community of Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

As of lunchtime on Monday, heavy smoke from the fire began to darken the streets of Gatlinburg, leading to the closure of most of the downtown shops and a near exiting of the community.

At approximately 11:35 a.m., Great Smoky Mountains National Park received notice of a fire 150 yards behind the Twin Creek Picnic Pavilion off Cherokee Orchard Road.

National Park Service firefighters and the Gatlinburg Fire Department have responded to the area. The Tennessee Division of Forestry is also responding to the area to stage equipment for use as needed.

All non-fire park service personnel have been evacuated from the nearby Twin Creeks Science Center as a precaution.

“At this point, it is unknown if the fire near Twin Creeks is a spot fire associated with the Chimney 2 Fire or if it is an independent ignition. Due to continued erratic winds, the fires are very unpredictable and more fire growth is expected,” stated an official from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

State and local fire departments have been alerted to respond as needed to potential threats to private properties along the park boundaries including Gatlinburg and Pittman Center.

Though the fire is still several miles from Gatlinburg, emergency officials fear that the strong winds may pose a threat to public safety in the area – particularly the risk of smoke.

The air quality has become so bad in certain areas that county school officials have been forced to move students from Pi Beta Phi Elementary to the Rocky Top Athletic Facility.  In addition to be threatened by flames and smoke, the community must also deal with falling ash from the inferno.