JASPER – The RCMP were criticized for seizing firearms from deserted homes in flood-stricken High River in 2013 but in contrast, the situation in Jasper is markedly different, according to an RCMP spokesperson.
A wildfire south of Jasper prompted an evacuation order on July 22. The wildfire reached the townsite July 24, destroying at least half of the structures.
“In Jasper we went door-to-door to see if people were home or not and that’s it,” said Alberta RCMP Media Relations Manager Fraser Logan on Monday. “They were just going door-to-door taking a census to see who was still in town and going back to say ‘OK, you still want to be here because the fire is getting worse.’ That was it.”
Logan said officers weren’t going through properties and yards looking for firearms.
“High River was so different,” he added. “We had military going around on boats and accompanied by RCMP members going door-to-door looking for bodies.”
Alberta RCMP, along with Alberta Sheriffs and Parks Canada Wardens, helped evacuate Jasper residents late Monday, July 22, and early Tuesday morning, July 23. At the first door knock, people at 41 homes chose to stay but later the same day, after the RCMP’s second door knock, only occupants in six homes chose to remain.
One elderly couple that had initially remained due to health and mobility issues, were later evacuated by officers. Their home was destroyed shortly after, according to an RCMP media release.
Along with the door-to-door checks, Tactical Support Group (TSG) members from Sherwood Park, Parkland, Fort Saskatchewan, Okotoks, Innisfail, Lloydminster, Coaldale, and High Level RCMP detachments went to Jasper to help with evacuations and to secure the highways into the national park.
