Unicoi County Sheriff: Don’t sightsee or you’ll be escorted out

Unicoi County Sheriff Mike Hensley said that visitors coming to the flood-torn county to sightsee have complicated recovery efforts and are beginning to endanger workers and themselves and is hampering recovery crews. The Sheriff noted that there are still power lines down, gas lines, and many utility lines exposed with a multitude of utilities working around the clock to repair them. Hensley said he and his deputies are going to speak with people they see out and ask them to state their business, to try to control the overwhelming amount of people entering the county for non-essential reasons. If they have no legitimate reason to be in the county, they will be escorted out.