Jasper mayor finds home destroyed by wildfire on tour of townsite

On a tour of the wreckage at the Jasper townsite, Mayor Richard Ireland stopped at one house, the charred remains of which had collapsed into the basement. It was his home.

On a tour of the wreckage at the Jasper townsite, Mayor Richard Ireland stopped at one house, the charred remains of which had collapsed into the basement.

It was his home.

He said his family moved into the house on his second birthday.

And while Ireland said the loss of his home of 67 years "is shattering ... when I stood back and looked, and saw what remains, I know that the community is still there."

Ireland reflected on what that means to him as he toured — alongside Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, ministers and media — the remains of the town that's home to about 5,000 residents who are joined by many more visitors at any given time of the year.

Friday's tour was the first broader look at the damage this week's wildfire inflicted on the townsite, which was evacuated less than 48 hours before the so-called monster blaze that's 36,000 hectares in size arrived at its doorstep.