Saturday, July 27, 2024

Wildfire Devastates Jasper National Park, Canada - Mass Evacuations, California's Park Fire Explodes 'Inferno Consuming Everything In Its Path'


Wildfire devastates Jasper National Park, forces mass evacuations, Canada



A destructive wildfire continues to engulf parts of Jasper National Park and the adjacent town of Jasper in Alberta, Canada, leading to extensive evacuations and significant structural damage. As of this morning, the fire, which started due to lightning, has destroyed an estimated 30 – 50 % of buildings in the area.


Alberta Premier Danielle Smith provided an emotional update yesterday, describing the situation as the worst nightmare for the community.


“This is devastating for our residents and the many who cherish Jasper National Park,” Smith said, noting the park’s significance as a major tourist destination and a source of pride for many generations​​.


The latest map shows the estimated perimeter of what Parks Canada originally named the North and South Wildfires. Because the perimeters of the two wildfires have merged, they are now referring to the wildfires in Jasper National Park as the Jasper Wildfire Complex.


Accurately mapping the affected area has been challenging due to strong winds, extreme fire behavior, smoke, and the relocation of incident management personnel to Hinton on the evening of July 24, Parks Canada officials said.


This area is now estimated at 36 000 ha (88 958 acres).


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California’s Park Fire explodes into massive ‘inferno consuming everything in its path’

Teo Blašković



In just several hours, the Park Fire in California exploded from a 162 ha (400 acres) fire to more than 58 750 ha (145 000 acres) massive inferno, consuming everything in its path. One person has been arrested on suspicion of starting the blaze.


The Park Fire broke out Wednesday afternoon, July 24, 2024, near Bidwell Municipal Park in Chico, California, and exploded in size to more than 28 700 ha (71 000 acres) by late Thursday, making it California’s largest wildfire so far this year.


At 01:04 LT on July 26, the fire had consumed 58 750 ha (145 171 acres) and was just 3% contained. The fire has consumed more than a dozen homes, buildings, and cars and is burning in 2 counties now – Butte and Tehama.


In several hours, the #ParkFire exploded from a 400-acre fire to a more than 71,000-acre inferno consuming everything in its path. Freelance videographer Tim Walton shared footage of the firefight. This incident should serve as a reminder to prepare in advance by preparing a go bag and planning two evacuation routes to escape your community.


Timelapse of the #ParkFire just northeast of Chico in Northern California, currently producing a fire tornado. The fire has grown an insane 120,000 acres (~4x the size of San Francisco) in a little over 24 hours.


CAL FIRE, in cooperation with multiple agencies, has activated Incident Management Team 3 (IMT 3) to coordinate the response, leveraging staff and resources from across the state.



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