By KRISTYN CADDELL
6 News Reporter
HARRIMAN (WATE) -- A small turn-off near TVA's Kingston Fossil Plant has become an instant tourist attraction, of sorts, with residents looking at the ash slide devastation for the first time.
A retention wall at the plant failed early Monday morning, resulting in the slide that damaged nine homes and destroyed three others in the area of Swan Pond Road.
One car after another pulled up to check out the scene on Tuesday.
"I just came to see how bad it was and it is worse than I imagined," says Roane County resident Michael Trail.
The ash slide is now the talk of Roane County. "It looks like an earthquake hit or something," says another Roane County resident, Don Graves.
At times, the turn-off near the TVA plant was like a busy mall parking lot. Onlookers of all ages snapped pictures of the devastation.
"It is something to look back on after it's all cleaned up," says Roane County resident Crystal Parton.
"This used to be a fishing hole and now it's nothing but a mess," Trail adds.
A few miles down the road, there's more destruction. Houses are off their foundations, docks are destroyed and marine life is dead.
"We drive by here all the time and it's just amazing to see all this that's happened and you never expect to see it in Roane County," Parton says.
Some peoply are tallying their losses, while others are counting their blessings, but all are hopeful a successful clean up is on the horizon.
A viewer submitted this photo to pix@WATE.com
