Assahafa.com
About 4,700 residents of the Alberta mountain town of Jasper and visitors to Jasper National Park have been forced to evacuate after a wildfire roared into the area late Monday night.
People were forced to flee west into British Columbia with little notice over mountain roads through darkness, soot and ash.
Photos and video shared on social media depicted a long line of cars and trucks, headlights on, red tail lights blinking, heading out bumper-to bumper as the deep blue night sky darkened.
“It’s wall-to-wall traffic,” said Edmonton resident Carolyn Campbell in a phone interview from her vehicle.
“It (the smoke) is pretty thick. We’ve got masks in the car.”
Campbell said it took hours to move just seven kilometres. She said they had enough gas but worried for others who fled with little in the tank.
The fire came with little notice, sending park and town officials scrambling to clear up traffic gridlock, find fuel for vehicles and help vulnerable people get to safety while also marshalling resources to battle the fires.
“Everyone in Jasper must evacuate now,” the Alberta government stated in an emergency alert just after 10 p.m. MT.
Alberta Emergency Alert initially said residents had to flee because the fire was five hours from the Jasper townsite, but an hour later corrected that to say people had five hours to get out — meaning they had to be out by 3 a.m. MT Tuesday.
Just after 2:30 a.m. local time, Alberta Emergency Alert issued a notice saying “the evacuation is progressing well.”
The majority of traffic is being directed west on Highway 16, and only when roadside fire conditions permit will small groups of escorted vehicles be directed east on Highway 16, the alert said.
Difficult to find accommodations
In B.C., the province scrambled to find accommodation for evacuees.
“B.C. will do everything we can to provide safe refuge for evacuees from Jasper, and are working as quickly as possible to co-ordinate routes and arrange host communities on our side of the border,” Bowinn Ma, B.C.’s minister for emergency management, said in a post on the social media site X.
A reception centre has been set up in the B.C. village of Valemount at the community hall at 101 Gorse Street.
Limited overnight lodging is available.
“We are able to give them some water, potentially some snacks,” says village CEO Anne Yanciw.
“For those who have been evacuated from their homes, we are able to give them vouchers for a place to stay and vouchers for food.”
Evacuees were directed to head west on Highway 16 — the east-west artery through the national park — and carry with them key documents, pets, medication and any other emergency supplies.
A reception centre in Grande Prairie at Bonnets Energy Centre will open at 9 a.m.
Jasper town officials and Parks Canada said they were rushing to catch up and clear up multiple logistical challenges, including traffic gridlock out of town and finding a place for people to go.
“We are working with the Government of Alberta to establish a reception centre in a large city,” they said in a post on Facebook.
“If you can find a campground or hotel to spend the night, or family or friends where you can spend the night, please do so.”
‘Multiple wildfire starts’
The way east was blocked.
Earlier Monday night, flames closed Highway 16 east of the Jasper townsite as crews battled a wildfire nine kilometres to the northeast.
Highway 93, the scenic north-south route in the national park, was also shut down. Travel was not recommended west of Hinton, Alta., which is just east of the national park.
“Please avoid the Jasper National Park area along Highway 16 and allow first responders to do their jobs safely,” RCMP said in a news release.
Parks Canada said evacuations had already taken place at numerous campgrounds, as well as the Athabasca Hostel and the Palisades Stewardship and Education Centre.
“Parks Canada is responding to multiple wildfire starts. This is an evolving and dynamic situation,” the agency said.
Thousands evacuated from homes in northern Alberta
About 7,500 people in Alberta were under evacuation orders as of Monday.
The three communities that make up Little Red River Cree Nation — John D’Or Prairie, Fox Lake and Garden River — remain under evacuation order as the out-of-control Semo Wildfire Complex burns nearby. It’s estimated to be more than 96,000 hectares in size.
“The next 48 hours is pretty critical,” Chief Conroy Sewepagaham said in a video update on Facebook.
“The dozer groups are going to be working 24/7. They’re going to do whatever they can to extend Highway 58 toward High Level, and extending the northern portion of the highway going into Garden River.”
Alberta Wildfire said the fire had reached Highway 58, the only road out of Garden River, and was 13 kilometres northwest of the community itself as of Monday afternoon.
Residents of the northern communities of Chipewyan Lake and Janvier 194 have also been ordered to leave.
In the Fort McMurray area, two large fires continue to burn out of control. MWF047 covers 105,515 ha and MWF077 is 19,112 ha. Both fires are just under seven kilometres away from industrial facilities, according to Alberta Wildfire.
The two southern highways out of Fort McMurray are closed due to wildfires in the area. Part of Highway 63 north of Wandering River was closed in both directions near Township Road 722. Highway 881 between Conklin and Janvier is also closed.
CBC EXPLAINS
States of local emergency help communities cope with disasters. Here’s how they work
Alberta wildfire evacuees now number 7,500; Little Red River Cree Nation fully evacuated
According to the Alberta Wildfire Status Dashboard, there are 170 active wildfires burning across the province as of Tuesday morning.
Environment Canada said cooler temperatures were expected to start moving into northwestern parts of the province starting Monday night, though hot conditions may persist through much of the week farther south.
Source: cbc
