Power restored to Jasper, Alta., after national park wildfire caused outage days ago

JASPER, ALBERTA – Parks Canada welcomed visitors back to Jasper National Park Wednesday after power was restored to the townsite that was knocked out by a wildfire north of the community earlier this month.  

“With the restoration of transmission power to the townsite of Jasper and outlying areas including Whistlers Campground, Parks Canada is welcoming visitors back to Jasper National Park,” the agency said in a release.  

“This has been a difficult period for many and we appreciate the adaptability and flexibility of our community residents, visitors to Jasper and the tourism industry.  

“Thank you for changing plans and your support of Jasper and the national park during this significant emergency.”  

ATCO Electricity said in an online update that it worked relentlessly to restore power to the area as quickly as possible.  

Town officials confirm that crews were able to switch the community to the transmission system from the temporary generator early Wednesday morning.  

Parks Canada said the Chetamon Mountain fire, which is about 20 kilometres north of the townsite, remains active and is now about 60 square kilometres in size.  

It says no communities in the area are threatened by the fire.  

The federal agency says there are 96 firefighters and five helicopters working on the wildfire, which was sparked by lightning on Sept. 1.  

Parks Canada said backcountry campground reservations are to resume on Thursday.  

Front-country bookings are to resume on Tuesday through the Parks Canada Reservation System for Whistlers Campground until Oct 10. All remaining front-country campgrounds are closed for the season.  

Feature image by iStock.com/artmanc10