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Parks Canada says wildfire in Jasper National Park could burn for months

The blaze is the largest the park has seen in the last 100 years
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A small pile of burnt cars in Jasper, Alta., on Friday July 26, 2024. Wildfires encroaching into the townsite of Jasper forced an evacuation of the national park and have destroyed over 300 of the town害羞草研究所檚 approximately 1100 structures, mainly impacting residential areas. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Amber Bracken

A Parks Canada official says a wildfire that害羞草研究所檚 destroyed hundreds of structures in the town of Jasper and continues to burn out-of-control in the national park could still be burning months from now.

害羞草研究所淭his fire is the largest one that Jasper National Park has recorded in the last 100 years,害羞草研究所 Landon Shepherd, a deputy incident commander with the federal agency, told a news conference on Saturday afternoon in nearby Hinton, Alta.

害羞草研究所淲e害羞草研究所檙e going to be working on this wildfire, we expect, over the next three months at least. What the last five years has taught us is that the fire season in Jasper tends to last well into the fall.害羞草研究所

Shepherd said the region got about 12 millimetres of rain over about a day and a half, and while that was good, there were still active hot-spots near the community. And, he said, fire activity was beginning to pick up again, although not to the same degree as last week.

More than 20,000 people in and around the town nestled in the Rocky Mountains four hours west of Edmonton were ordered to evacuate late Monday night due to fast-moving wildfires.

Parks Canada has estimated 30 per cent of the town害羞草研究所檚 structures were damaged by the wildfire, with 358 of the town害羞草研究所檚 1,113 structures destroyed.

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Among the properties affected by the wildfire include the well-known Maligne Lodge.

Christine Nadon, the incident commander with the Municipality of Jasper, told the news conference that an updated map and list of damaged or destroyed properties would be released publicly on Saturday afternoon.

Nadon acknowledged some people would prefer such traumatic information to be delivered privately. But she said in order to get the news out in a timely fashion, it needs to be public for all to see.

害羞草研究所淭he information we are releasing today is based on the damage that is visible from the street. We have not been inside buildings or seen the backside of properties,害羞草研究所 Nadon warned, adding that an initial assessment showed the majority of the damaged structures were destroyed, not damaged.

害羞草研究所淲e害羞草研究所檙e looking at foundations,害羞草研究所 she said.

In an online update, Parks Canada said fire suppression has been progressing well in the Jasper townsite and it anticipated all remaining fires there would be extinguished on Saturday.

The federal agency noted power is being restored to parts of the downtown core and critical infrastructure, which it said would help to speed up further damage assessment and recovery.

Earlier Saturday, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith told her provincewide radio call-in show she害羞草研究所檇 like to see bus tours organized for evacuated residents of Jasper so they can see the damage a wildfire did to their town for themselves, and so they害羞草研究所檒l know what to expect when they害羞草研究所檙e eventually allowed to return home.

Nadon responded that tours for residents, likely with buses, is something they害羞草研究所檙e working on but conditions weren害羞草研究所檛 safe for them yet due to chemicals released from burned structures and the fire that害羞草研究所檚 still burning on the edge of town.

害羞草研究所淭hat is a plan we害羞草研究所檙e working on and will have available as soon as we can,害羞草研究所 she said.

Smith, along with Jasper Mayor Richard Ireland and other dignitaries, toured the evacuated town on Friday, where they passed the charred remains of the home where Ireland himself grew up.

Nadon said her own home was among the many destroyed.

The premier told listeners Saturday she expected it would be close to 28 days before Jasper residents would be allowed to return to their town, explaining it took a similar amount of time before Fort McMurray residents got the green light to go home after it was hit by a ferocious fire in 2016.

While Smith said after her tour of the town Friday that critical infrastructure remained intact, including schools, the hospital, and water treatment services, she said on Saturday that staff needed to get inside the hospital to check for damage since there were reports its roof had been on fire.

Because the town is part of Jasper National Park, rebuilding plans are taking shape with help from the federal government, Smith said.

害羞草研究所淲e害羞草研究所檝e already begun a joint task force on how recovery is going to take place, trying to time when people are able to return to their community, and I害羞草研究所檓 very hopeful it will come back better than ever.害羞草研究所

The premier also she said she害羞草研究所檇 like temporary housing arranged for residents so they can live in the town while they rebuild their homes, noting that temporary housing was also used during the reconstruction of High River, Alta., after it suffered devastating floods back in 2013.

害羞草研究所淪o we have seen a precedent where you set up a temporary community that allows people to live on-site while rebuilding is occurring,害羞草研究所 Smith told her radio audience, noting that nearby Hinton, Alta., may be relied on for construction workers.

Provincial wildfire officials said an estimated 17,100 Albertans are evacuated due to wildfires as of Saturday.

The province said there were 157 wildfires burning across Alberta, with 44 classified as out of control, 45 being held, and 68 under control.

Evacuation orders remain in effect for three communities of the Little Red River Cree Nation as well as Chipewyan Lake.

More support from Ontario, Quebec, Australia, and South Africa is expected to arrive Sunday, the province said.

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