Fourteen (14) insurance companies have filed a lawsuit against the federal government for damages resulting from the Gatlinburg wildfires in 2016.

According to court documents, the insurers are collectively seeking damages to cover claims made following the wildfire incident that occurred in November 2016.

The lawsuit was filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act “for damages arising from the negligent acts or omissions on the part of employees or agents of the Department of the Interior (DOI) and/or National Park Service (NPS) in response to the Chimney Tops 2 Fire in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.”

The Chimney Tops 2 fire is one of several conflagrations that made up the Great Smoky Mountains wildfires which erupted in the national park in late November 2016.

It was the largest of the blazes, burning more than 10,000 acres within the park and forcing the closure of the Chimney Tops Trail. Outside the park, the fires burned about 6,000 acres.