The largest fire, referred to as the south wildfire, is estimated to be 10,800 hectares in size and burning just eight kilometres from the town
The Jasper townsite remains under threat from two nearby wildfires that have damaged infrastructure while converging from opposite directions and expected to grow Wednesday amid continued high winds.
The largest fire, referred to as the south wildfire, is estimated to be among the largest in Jasper National Park’s history at 10,800 hectares in size and burning just eight kilometres from the town.
“This wildfire is significantly larger and more aggressive than the wildfires we’ve seen in the past few years,” said Katie Ellsworth, an incident commander with Parks Canada.
“This one has much closer proximity to the community.”
Ellsworth said the south wildfire moved four kilometres to the north overnight, leaving it two-and-half kilometres from Valley of the Five Lakes, a popular hiking trail.
A second fire, called the north wildfire, is significantly smaller at 270 hectares but is burning only five kilometres from the town.
Critical infrastructure in the townsite is being protected with sprinkler systems and fire barriers are being set up with bulldozers. Crews are also going through neighbourhoods and removing potentially flammable materials including dried brush and propane tanks.
“The priorities from this incident remain to keep people safe and keep the main wildfire away from the main town of Jasper,” said Ellsworth.
“The town of Jasper has not been impinged by fire at this time. All of our efforts are focused on controlling further fire spread and protecting our community.”
Evacuation alert issues
The wildfires prompted an evacuation alert late Monday night that has led to an estimated 25,000 people, including residents and visitors, to flee the area.
The initial alert late Monday night stated a fire would reach the townsite in five hours, but was later corrected to clarify that residents had five hours to leave the area.
Jasper Mayor Richard Ireland said the town regrets the error and has since corrected the issue but couldn’t yet say what led to the mistake.
“In the long run, it may have increased the level of anxiety, (but) it did not negatively impact the evacuation of the town.”
He said a glitch around the emergency alert system that meant not everyone in the park got an emergency alert had also since been identified and fixed.
“The evacuation plan that we have developed over a number of years, and … implemented yesterday, that was effective significantly because of the actions of the evacuees themselves.”
‘Rain doesn’t count until it’s on the ground’
Ellsworth said high wind is the norm in the area this time of year and was expected to continue much of Wednesday albeit amid temperatures cooling into the mid-20 C range.
“We expect today that we’re going to have strong winds continuing and we expect that this will increase our fire behaviour and fire growth.”
Lightning is believed to be the cause of the fire, made easier by dry conditions in the days before the evacuation order where temperatures reached 37 C and humidity was as low as 11 per cent.
“Our temperatures are higher than our relative humidity, this has resulted in a critical dryness,” she said.
Rain is forecast for Wednesday evening into Thursday.
“We are very grateful for that,” Ellsworth said. “We do anticipate that if we receive the precipitation, we will see a reduction in fire activity.”
But, she cautioned, “the rain doesn’t count until it’s on the ground.”
She said backcountry visitors continue to be taken from the park, some via helicopter, as more reach cellphone range and check in with Parks Canada which is cross-referencing with its visitor registration system.
“We’re getting a sense and understanding of who is accessing what trails at what time period and who those individuals are,” she said.
“Anyone who’s currently in an active reservation we’re checking up on.”
Ellsworth added roughly 245 people had been rescued so far with an unspecified number still to be taken out.
Infrastructure damaged
Ellsworth said the fires have led to some infrastructure damage along the Icefields Parkway and Highway 16 although conditions have been too severe to allow closer inspections though it is hoped those will be completed by the end of Wednesday.
“Once we are able to access the areas safely, either from the air or from the ground, we will provide further information on structure loss.”
Infrastructure in the area also includes Parks Canada facilities, campgrounds, day-use areas, washrooms, and power lines.
Ireland said a small group of locals from a variety of backgrounds were staying in the townsite to support those fighting the flames with food and shelter while others maintain essential services.
He said some hotels have remained open to Parks Canada crews and staff.
“It’s a small number and they are doing the work that needs to be done to support the first responders and others who remain in the community for essential work.”
There is no timeline yet for when residents can return, either permanently or temporarily to get left behind belongings.
“We do understand this is stressful,” Ellsworth said, adding a timeline will be provided when one is available.
The two Jasper wildfires are among 176 active wildfires across the province as of mid-afternoon Wednesday, including 54 classified as out of control.