OTTAWA — The federal government is pushing back against suggestions that it waited too long to act to combat the raging wildfire that made its way to Jasper’s historic resort town in Alberta late Wednesday.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wrote on X Wednesday night that his government had approved Alberta’s request for federal assistance and that it will be deploying resources from the Canadian Armed Forces, support for evacuation and more emergency wildfire resources to the province.
On Thursday, Trudeau, who is on vacation in British Columbia, will also be chairing an Incident Response Group meeting with senior ministers and officials to discuss the ongoing wildfires, according to a senior government official with knowledge of the matter.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is also set to hold a press conference on Thursday.
Parks Canada said in a statement late on Wednesday evening that “significant loss” has occurred within the Jasper townsite but was not able to report “on the extent of damage to specific locations or neighbourhoods at this time.”
It also said in a separate statement that firefighters were working to save “as many structures as possible and to protect critical infrastructure,” including the wastewater treatment plant, communications facilities and the Trans Mountain pipeline, that runs through the park.
But the videos and pictures of the iconic townsite and the national park being consumed by flames has infuriated many people, some of whom have cast the blame on the federal government for waiting days before sending help to the province.
Jasper was under attack by fires from the north and south. Mandatory evacuation orders were issued Monday, forcing the town’s 5,000 residents and 20,000 park visitors to flee.
Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan said on CBC Calgary Thursday morning that he spoke with bureaucrats at Parks Canada who assured him it was not a question of resources and that more boots on the ground would not have helped.
“The intensity of the fire was just so severe that even these resources would not would not have had an impact in this case,” he said.
Sajjan said Parks Canada has a large and capable firefighting force and had everything it needed but the fire was being fed by hot dry conditions and winds. He said Canadian Armed Forces don’t have the training for fires this severe.
“The type of support that was needed in Jasper itself requires a much higher level of support that the Canadian Armed Forces are just not trained for.”
Parks Canada is part of the federal government and Sajjan’s office insisted that the department has been on the ground since day one. It said the minister was monitoring the situation and is in constant communication with his provincial counterparts.
Ultimately, Alberta’s formal request for federal assistance came Wednesday evening and it was approved “within an hour or two.”
“Jasper is not the only place burning. Northern Alberta is also burning,” said Joanna Kanga, Sajjan’s press secretary. “So that request came in because Alberta is in need of federal assistance for the wider situation.”
The Department of National Defence was not able to immediately say how many members of the Canadian Armed Forces will be on the ground in Jasper, when they will arrive and what exactly they will be tasked with once they arrive.
Meanwhile, help is coming in from other provinces.
Quebec has already sent two water bombers and some personnel to Alberta to fight the wildfire. More help is coming from Ontario, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, said Kanga.
She added there are currently over 100 firefighters from Australia and New Zealand helping combat wildfires in British Columbia and Alberta, and the government is working with Mexico and South Africa “to acquire more personnel as we get into the critical peak of the season.”
Trudeau tweeted that the government is also co-ordinating firefighting and airlift assistance.
“Alberta, we’re with you,” he wrote.
National Post
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