Jasper wildfire evacuees can start returning to townsite on Friday

People who live in Jasper, Alta., will be allowed to return to the community on Friday, but wildfire officials say they should not expect to spend the night in their homes.

Town incident commander Christine Nadon told reporters it's a blanket re-entry to allow everyone to come back at once. 

“Residents should be prepared to go see their property, but they likely will have to stay somewhere else at night,” she said Tuesday.

“You can't count on spending your first night in Jasper.”

Nadon said re-entry criteria have been achieved at an “unprecedented rate.” These include restoring emergency services to a basic level and reconnecting most other infrastructure, such as electricity and water. 

Critical retail services, like grocery stores, are still in the works, Nadon said. Park trails, campgrounds and day-use areas are not included in this re-entry phase as they still need to be assessed for safety.

“Re-entry into the municipality will pose challenges to those who have lost their homes, businesses and treasured places,” said Jonathan Large, incident commander for Parks Canada. 

“We hope that this first step brings some hope to the community.”

It was almost three weeks ago that roughly 25,000 people fled Jasper townsite and its national park as wildfires inched closer to the area. Flames destroyed one-third of the town’s buildings. Key infrastructure, like schools and the water treatment plant, was spared.

Over the weekend, Parks Canada said it could take more than three weeks to restore residential services to the mountain town 367 kilometres southwest of Edmonton.

As of Sunday night, the out-of-control fire stood at 330 square kilometres in size. On Aug. 3, firefighting efforts claimed the life of Morgan Kitchen, a 24-year-old wildland firefighter and former soldier from Calgary.

Nadon said there are currently no resources or accommodations in place for people who lost their homes in the fire.

Officials recommend waiting a few days before coming into town, she said.

“Whether you still have a home standing or you don't, you can't really count on being able to stay there that night, so people should be prepared to return to their existing accommodation,” Nadon said. 

“If there is a home standing, there could be significant damage on the inside … and for those who don't have homes anymore, they are welcome to come and look at the site, but obviously should plan to stay somewhere else.”