One of two raging wildfires menacing the town of Jasper in the Canadian Rockies' largest national park roared into town Wednesday and began burning buildings.
Jasper National Park officials said the fire entered the southern edge of the community Wednesday evening and crews were battling multiple structural fires and working to protect key infrastructure. There were significant losses in some areas, they said.
Forest firefighters and others without self-contained breathing apparatuses were told to evacuate to the nearby town of Hinton, with structural firefighters staying behind.
Parks Canada spokesperson James Eastham told reporters outside Jasper that the town is filled with smoke and there "has been structural loss," adding that "significant loss has occurred within the townsite."
"At this point I can't confirm how many, locations or specific structures. The fire continues to burn," he said.
The park said in a statement that Wednesday "has been an exceptionally difficult day for Jasperites, incident personnel and everyone who loves Jasper."
Structural firefighters continue to work to save as many structures as possible and to protect critical infrastructure. Many more structural firefighters are en route to provide assistance.
As the pictures and videos circulating online show, significant loss has occurred within the townsite.
Parks Canada said firefighters are working to save "as many structures as possible and to protect critical infrastructure, including the wastewater treatment plant, communications facilities, the Trans Mountain Pipeline and others."
