What started as a three-acre fire ended up burning over 17,000 acres killing, at last count, eleven people and destroying over 100 homes or businesses.

On Monday morning, an air quality advisory was issued for the area because of the smoke coming from the Chimney Tops area of the Smoky Mountains

Those in the area said while it was an unusual amount of smoke, they weren’t worried and could have never predicted what was to come that night.

The fire in the Chimney Tops area started the day before Thanksgiving in steep terrain and was listed as three acres burning at the summit on the trail.

It was a slow moving fire and authorities were suspicious it was started by an arsonist.

On Monday the fire began spreading thanks to high winds and exceptional drought conditions.

More wildfires began burning in other areas because of embers flying.

The high-winds helped create yet another ignitor of flames; falling trees knocking down power-lines which began arcing and igniting more fires.  Before long, there were many large areas of woods on fire and spreading fast with high gusts.

Firefighters are still working to put out even more patches of fire that weren’t doused by the rainfall. And yes, more victims are expected to be found amid the charred ruins of what truly became the smoky mountains of east Tennessee.