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Parts of the popular tourist town of Jasper in Canada have been fully destroyed as a wildfire continues to ravage the historic alpine resort and the surrounding national park.
On Wednesday, authorities reported more than 170 blazes across the western province of Alberta, prompted by a lightning storm, fuelled by powerful wind gusts.
Officials say the fire was 5km outside of Jasper when powerful winds pushed it to the town in less than 30 minutes.
And given the speed and intensity of the blaze, fire crews working to protect key infrastructure were ordered to retreat.
“Today has been an exceptionally difficult day for Jasperites, incident personnel and everyone who loves Jasper,” Jasper National Park said on its official X page.
The fire was spreading through Jasper National Park forcing around 25,000 people to evacuate, according to park officials.
“Significant loss has occurred within the townsite,” another post from the park read.
“Our focus continues to be on saving as many structures as possible.”
In an updated post on Friday, the park confirmed all critical infrastructure in Jasper was successfully protected including the hospital, emergency services building, both elementary and junior/senior schools, activity center and wastewater treatment plant.
“Although more time is needed to complete a detailed damage assessment, it is clear that some homes and businesses have been lost,” the statement on its Facebook page read.
”The fire also damaged a number of bridges around the town and throughout the national park, including the Moberly Bridge and the Old Fort Point Bridge. Bridges on the Icefields Parkway will need to be assessed for structural damage as well.”
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said that between 30 and 50 percent of the buildings in Jasper have potentially been destroyed.
During an emotional press conference where she broke down in tears, Ms. Smith said Jasper will require a “significant rebuild.”
“We share a sense of loss with all of those who live in the town and care for it and have helped build it. Jasper we will continue to stand by you,” she said.
Meanwhile, Jasper’s mayor Richard Ireland said the damage was “beyond description and comprehension”.
He said the fast-moving wildfire has “ravaged our small, tight-knit mountain community”.
Aussie firefighters deployed to help
Around 100 Australian and New Zealand firefighters are among more than 400 others from around that will head over to help battle the flames in the coming days.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took to X to thank first responders for their quick response to the wildfires.
“As the heartbreaking images from Jasper emerge, I want to thank the brave first responders who are in Alberta right now, fighting to save every home and every community they can,” he wrote in a post.
“Thank you for your courage, and for working non-stop to fight these wildfires.
“And, to reinforce their efforts, over 400 firefighters from our friends in Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, and South Africa are on their way to fight wildfires in Alberta, shoulder-to-shoulder with our Canadian teams.”
Jasper National Park said because of winds with gusts upwards of 100 kilometres an hour, the north and south fire both spread towards the town of Jasper and have merged together.
“With today’s rain and cooler temperatures, fire activity is significantly subdued. However, it is important to note that the fire is still out of control and significant work remains before conditions are safe enough to allow for limited re-entry into the park,” it explained.
“Crews are taking advantage of today’s conditions to make progress on containing the fire and the community, before conditions return to hot and dry.”
Heartbreaking footage
Heartbreaking footage has since emerged on social media showing the true devastation of the historic town.
“There are no words. Jasper is burned to the ground,” one person wrote on X alongside a video of what the once abundant town looks like now.
The footage was taken by an anonymous official from inside a truck that showed the smouldering remains of the town, including burned cars.
“That’s Mom and Dad’s house,” a voice can be heard saying as the truck briefly pauses in front of a destroyed home.
One tourist shared footage from a recent trip alongside the caption, “My heart is breaking” as she showed what the town previously looked like.
News.com.au journalist Lauren McMah was in the much-loved tourist hotspot earlier this year and said she too has been left devastated by what’s currently unfolding.
“I fell in love with Jasper a couple of months ago after arriving on the Rocky Mountaineer train,” Lauren said.
“The town itself was gorgeous, like a charming alpine village with all these colorful, characterful buildings that look straight out of a fairytale book.”
“And the surrounding national park is breathtaking. Some parts of it were still visibly damaged by wildfire from a few years ago, the Canadian wilderness doesn’t seem to recover from fire as quickly as the Australian bush. But it was all just sensational, and abundant with wildlife.”
She said she’s gutted for the people in Jasper and believes this will hit Australians really hard.
“Not only do we understand the devastation of fires like these, but the Canadian Rocky Mountains are so popular with Aussie travellers and this is one of the highlights in the region.
“I can’t stop thinking about the wonderful people we met there, who so warmly welcomed us to their town just a few months ago – I can’t believe the footage I’m seeing of it now.”
According to Jasper National Park, almost 2.5 million visited the park in 2023 alone, while the famous Rockies resort town of Jasper has about 5,000 residents.
