Breaking: Three confirmed to have passed away at the mountains National park due to…

Tennessee National Guard members have dropped 25,000 gallons of water on a wildfire in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Hannah Mountain, and the fire has grown.

The undergrowth fire in steep terrain has expanded to 23 acres. More crews are expected to arrive Aug. 30.

These areas of the national park are closed as crews fight the Flint Gap fire:

• Backcountry campsites 14, 15 and 16
• Parson Branch Road
• Rabbit Creek Trail from Abrams Creek to Cades Cove is closed
• Hannah Mountain Trail from Parson Branch Road to Little Bottom Trail

Crews expect to fight the fire from the air and on the ground over the next several days. The cause of the fire, which started the evening of Aug. 26, is under investigation with support from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

Unlike past years, the Smokies are not under the same fire danger levels due to more consistent rainfall during the summer. The mountains are currently under moderate risk for wildfire and the area is only considered “moderately dry” by the U.S. Drought Monitor, not the “extreme” or “exceptional” droughts as they have been prior years.