Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in Alberta on Monday to visit the Jasper wildfire command centre.
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He and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith were briefed on the wildfire response in the morning by leaders at the unified command unit in Hinton, about 80 kilometres east of the Jasper townsite and 280 kilometres west of Edmonton.
Trudeau also met with fire crews and evacuees.
He did not take questions from media afterward.
Speaking to reporters later, Smith said she asked the federal government to consider providing an emergency wage subsidy, suspend business lease payments, and help fund land planning to speed up the redevelopment process in Jasper.
She also said there could be a need to support businesses that won’t be eligible for insurance because they did not experience property loss.
“Overall, I think we had a productive conversation today and I look forward to building on this with discussions in the near future on how we can collaborate further,” the premier told reporters during the virtual daily provincial wildfire update.
Jasper resident tours begin
Also on Monday, 62 Jasper residents were taken by bus into the townsite to see the damage caused by wildfire on July 24.
About one third of the town located in Jasper National Park was burned down that evening.
Monday was the first chance residents had to see the destruction in person, as tours originally scheduled for Sunday were postponed after a firefighter died the day before.
In total, 563 people had signed up for a tour as Monday morning. Those who lost homes were given priority access.
One of the tour buses on Monday left from Edmonton, while the other two from Hinton. A bus from Valemount is scheduled to tour the town on Wednesday.
No one is allowed off the bus for safety reasons, although authorities say all dangerous areas in town have been fenced off.
Counsellors are also on the bus to provide support.
Business owners have also been allowed to enter the town with insurance adjustors and an escort, Smith said.
“There’s a real sense of: let’s get on with this; let’s get on with rebuilding,” Smith recalled from her conversations with Jasper business owners.
“There’s a lot of real hope, especially since the main infrastructure in the town is still standing… I think that’s given a lot of people reason to believe there’s a good base to start on for rebuilding.”
Public Safety and Emergency Services Minister Mike Ellis said all emergency services – police, 911 and dispatch – have all been restored, as well as power to downtown, the hospital and water treatment plant.
Wildfire update
According to the latest data, the Jasper Wildfire Complex was about 34,000 hectares big.
A Parks Canada update is expected Monday evening.
Many parts of the province received rain over Sunday night and were seeing cooler temperatures and higher humidity on Monday, meaning no significant growth on any wildfires, Alberta Wildfire’s Christie Tucker said.
“Firefighters are taking advantage of conditions to build and reinforce containment lines and make progress on the ground to control those fires,” she said.
In total, there are 119 wildfires burning in Alberta’s protected forests, 15 of which are out of control.