By David Ljunggren and Nia Williams, Reuters
Visitors evacuate Jasper National Park in Canada on July 22, 2024, due to a wildfire. Photo: LE MINH KHUE / AFP
A raging wildfire has devastated the western Canadian tourist town of Jasper, potentially destroying up to 50 percent of structures, and firefighters were working on Thursday to save as many buildings as possible, authorities said.
Jasper is in the middle of mountainous Jasper National Park, in the province of Alberta. The town and the park, which draw more than two million tourists a year, were evacuated on Monday, when officials estimated there were up to 10,000 people in the town and a further 15,000 visitors in the park.
"There is no denying that this is the worst nightmare for any community," Alberta premier Danielle Smith told reporters, while choking back tears.
"We're seeing potentially 30 percent to 50 percent structural damage ... that's going to be a significant rebuild," she said, adding the fire was still out of control.
Parks Canada said there had been a "significant loss" of buildings inside the town but added it could not give specific details of the damage, or which areas had been hit and it urged residents not to return.
Video from the town showed vehicles and entire blocks burned to the ground, including a historic Anglican church.
Jasper resident Eva Korduliakova heard the news that her home was burning from thousands of kilometers away Thursday morning, while visiting family in the Czech Republic with her seven-year-old son.
"I am single mum who became homeless and jobless overnight," she wrote in an email. "Our house is gone. I didn't get a chance to grab any of my belongings."
Jasper mayor Richard Ireland said the town was beginning to come to terms with "the devastating impact" of the fire.
"Last night's wildfires have simply ravaged our small tight-knit mountain community, the destruction and the loss that so many of our residents are facing simply defies description," he told a press conference, his voice breaking.
One major concern for responders is if the fire damages the Trans Mountain oil pipeline, which can carry 890,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil from Edmonton to Vancouver.
"At this time there is no indication of damage to our infrastructure, and the pipelines continue to operate safely," pipeline operator Trans Mountain said in a statement.
CN Rail said it suspended rail operations through the town on Wednesday afternoon as the wildfire conditions worsened.
The federal government and other cities in Alberta are sending emergency crews. In addition, a total of 400 firefighters from Mexico, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand are due to arrive in the coming days.
' Wall of flames'
There are currently 176 wildfires burning in Alberta, more than 50 of which are out of control. Around 10 of those blazes are close to the border with British Columbia, where there 423 wildfires burning and dozens of evacuation orders and alerts.
The federal government said in April that high temperatures and tinder dry forests meant this could be a catastrophic year for wildfires in Canada. The Jasper fire was caused by a lightning strike on Monday afternoon and fuelled by strong winds, according to Parks Canada.
Flames from the blaze rose 100 metres high, and strong wind gusts on Wednesday afternoon pushed the fire 5 kilometres in less than 30 minutes, said Alberta public safety minister Mike Ellis.
"Any firefighter will tell you there's little to nothing you can do when you have a wall of flames coming at you like that," Ellis said.
Environment Canada is forecasting 10mm to 20mm of rain for Thursday (local time), which might help firefighters.
The Jasper Park Lodge, one of the largest hotels in town, said the fire had reached its grounds. The 400-room residence is run by Fairmont, a group owned by France's Accor.
The Jasper fire could be one of the most damaging in Alberta since a 2016 conflagration that hit the oil town of Fort McMurray, forcing the evacuation of all 90,000 residents and destroying 10 percent of all structures in the city.