But with the power going in and out for nearly a week, Vlachos is struggling to keep food ready for his Jasper, Alta., restaurant. “You go back to the restaurant and throw it all away and start making new things,” Vlachos, who immigrated to Canada from Greece with her family in 1968, said Thursday. “And yesterday six o’clock, no electricity again. And you work in the dark.” The city, about 360 kilometers west of Edmonton, has only had intermittent power since Sunday because of the Chetamon Mountain fire that destroyed the main power grid. Atco is working to transition the city to generator electricity — expected to power the community for weeks — but has seen disruptions due to the complexity of that process. Officials say the fire, which was estimated at 5,600 hectares as of Friday morning, does not pose a threat to the city. But residents had to deal with the effects of power outages, including food lost from inoperative refrigerators and freezers. Melody Gaboury is a coordinator with Jasper Food Recovery. The organization receives and distributes food from local businesses. He said Wednesday’s draw was huge – and he was gone within two hours when he was taken to the Anglican Church Hall. “I guess people have lost everything in their home and they want to replace it.” The wildfire on Chetamon Mountain was started by lightning on September 1st. (Parks Canada) Some parts of the city have been without power longer than others. Evans Mwaniki lives on the west side and said as of Thursday he had been without for five days. He worries about worsening the situation for those without transportation in other cities as local grocers run out of stock. He wants tourists to avoid visiting the city. “We need to be fed first before we can give you a tour,” he said.
Quiet streets
Officials have emphasized to visitors to make alternate plans and avoid staying in Jasper. Oliver Andrew said the city’s streets are quieter than they would be at this time of year. But the manager of the Astoria Hotel said he’s still seeing plenty of business — the hotel has its own generator. “We’ve had a few wedding parties that had to cancel at the last minute at other resorts come and stay with us.” The hotel, complete with bar and restaurant, added the diesel generator four years ago when the town moved from local electricity to the grid. Oliver Andrews, manager of the Astoria Hotel, said the facility was full Thursday. The century-old business had installed its own power generator four years ago. (Madeleine Cummings/CBC) Andrew said staff is reviewing the emergency response plan. “They tell us the city is still safe. However, we understand that things can also change quite quickly. “So we really do it hour by hour, day by day.”
Jasper Fire Status
Anne-Claude Pépin with Parks Canada said during a news availability Friday morning that the fire has grown slightly in recent days. He said 25 additional firefighters arrived to help with the effort, especially around the south side of the fire closer to Jasper. Pépin said progress has been made in laying hoses and removing fuel – brush, leaves, etc. – in fires. Air tankers have also dropped fire retardant on the north side of the fire. With no rain in the forecast, Pépin said the fire is expected to grow. “The next two, three days are going to be hot, dry and windy,” he said, adding that the focus would be to narrow the perimeter next to communities. “Because it’s a huge fire and we can only contain certain areas.”
