Jasper Fire Chief Watches His Home Burn Down

A fire chief in the Canadian town of Jasper made the difficult decision to retreat even as he watched his own home burn, to protect the safety of his crew.

“We had to make the decision to just move away from the area and let things happen,” Mathew Conte told CBC Televisionrecalls the moment last week when firefighters had to retreat while battling a blaze that was burning down a community.

Officials say about 30% of structures in the town in the Canadian Rockies were destroyed, including many homes.

Cool, wet weather has brought relief over the weekend and fire crews are working to protect the rest of the town ahead of forecasted dry weather.

The largest fire to hit the park in a century reached the town of Jasper, Alberta, which has a population of about 5,000, on Wednesday evening.

The fire, with flames reaching 100m (330ft) high at one point, spread rapidly towards the town that night. Driven by strong winds, it leapt 5km (3 miles) in just 30 minutes.

Images released over the weekend of the devastation in the popular tourist town of Jasper National Park showed homes and businesses burned to their foundations.

Mr Conte, who was directing firefighters on the ground when the fire broke out, said he saw his home burn down.

“I have witnessed the stages from when my house started burning down until now,” he told Global Newsand added that the scene was “overwhelming.”

“I have to put that aside and just focus on the task at hand,” he said.

Several park employees and the town mayor also lost their homes in the fire.

Federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said Monday that officials are now planning a phased re-entry once all fires in the community have been extinguished, though there is no specific timeline for that.

So far, the wildfire has burned more than 79,000 acres (32,000 hectares) of land.

It started with a lightning strike early last week. A massive evacuation effort by the town and park visitors was credited with no injuries or deaths reported.

Officials said over the weekend that firefighters are expected to be working to extinguish the wildfires for at least the next three months.

Another out-of-control fire is also burning near Miette Springs, about 30 km (18 miles) north of Jasper National Park.

The group of fires is known as the Jasper Fire Complex and is one of 129 active wildfires across the province of Alberta as of Monday.

Animals living in Jasper National Park were also affected.

“When faced with fire, the extraordinary instincts of wild animals, like bears and moose, will lead them to safety,” the park said in a statement Sunday.

A female grizzly bear, tracked by GPS collar, hid herself and her two cubs in a wet spot on the Athabasca River as the fire broke out on Wednesday.

The bear survived and appears to be in good health.

“She had been eating a mixture of berries and clover on the edge of the Jasper Park Lodge golf course,” the park said.

While some animals have died as a result of the fires, wildlife officials said the fires were “a natural process and we hope the animals will find new homes,” although the fires will have a lasting impact.

The park is home to 53 species of mammals, including moose, bears, elk, mountain goats and reindeer.

Next week could be challenging for the fire brigade.

“Weather forecasts indicate that dry conditions will make wildfires more likely to start, making the current progress extremely important,” the park said in a statement Sunday evening.