GATLINBURG, Tenn.  — In the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, a Tennessee tourist mecca emerged from the smoke, charred and vacant after a swift-moving wildfire. Many buildings were burned to their foundations. Hotel fire alarms echoed through empty streets lined with burned-out cars.

The fire picked its spots as it tore through the Gatlinburg area Monday: It destroyed at least 150 buildings but left others intact. Three people were killed and more than a dozen were hospitalized.

By Tuesday evening, almost nothing remained of the Castle, perhaps the largest and most iconic home overlooking Gatlinburg. Entire churches disappeared. So did the Cupid’s Chapel of Love wedding venue, though its managers promised to move scheduled weddings to a sister venue, Chapel at the Park.

Officials surveying early damage said the Westgate Smoky Mountain Resort & Spa, with more than 100 buildings, is likely entirely gone.

“I’m just astonished this is my town,” Marci Claude, a spokeswoman for the city and for Gatlinburg Convention and Visitors Bureau, said as she saw the destruction for the first time on a media tour Tuesday.

Fanned by hurricane-force winds Monday night, the flames reached the doorstep of Dollywood, the theme park in nearby Pigeon Forge named after country music legend and local hero Dolly Parton. The park was spared any significant damage.

Local officials offered reassurance that the worst was over Tuesday. More rain was in the forecast overnight and through Wednesday, though high winds were expected Tuesday night.