GRAVES GAP—The mountaintop fire at Graves Gap in north Anderson County burned more than 300 acres this week, a state official said Thursday afternoon.

The fire off New River Highway (Highway 116) burned about 377 acres, said Nathan Waters, assistant district forester in the Tennessee Division of Forestry Administration’s East Tennessee District.

It was officially called the Switchback Fire. Graves Gap is near the top of a mountain reached by a series of switchbacks on New River Highway. It is between Frost Bottom Road and Briceville Highway, which connect Oliver Springs and Briceville, and New River and Rosedale.

The cause of the Graves Gap fire is under investigation, Waters said. He wasn’t aware of any structures that were endangered, although there are homes and churches near the mountaintop. [Read more…]