A young volunteer firefighter’s heroic actions helped save 16 people from the devastating wildfires in Canada’s Jasper National Park.
CTV reports 18-year-old Colleen Knull was working a summer job as part of the kitchen staff at Jasper lodge when an evacuation order was issued Monday night. Knull acted decisively, immediately alerting guests at the lodge of the incoming danger and tracking down people who were camping in the area. Knull then led the group on 4-hour hike through rough terrain complicated by intense smoke and ash raining down on the group relying on her tracking skills and knowledge of the surrounding area to navigate in the dark.
“I had previously rode up a horse up to that lodge on that same trail and throughout the way me and my employer, we had cut logs on the way up. There were 67 logs, so there would be be 67 cut logs on the way down … So I used my tracking skills – following horse tracks, horse manure.” -Colleen Knull
Colleen Knull led the group out wilderness to her pickup truck where she drove them through a road closure and into town to safety with the RCMP guiding her to a safe zone. In total Knull helped 16 people out of the evacuation zone. No one was seriously injured. Knull says the experience reaffirmed her desire become a full-time professional firefighter:
“I like to be able to help people. I like the fact that what I do in my work does good.”
Jasper National Park Jasper Wildfire Status:
Jasper Wildfire Complex Update: Current as of 10 p.m. July 26, 2024
Today crews are taking advantage of the cooler weather to make progress on containing the remaining hotspots in smoldering structures and along the wildfire perimeter closest to the townsite.
Assessments to infrastructure damages is an ongoing process.
Damage within the townsite is estimated at around 30%. Out of a total of 1113 structures within the town, 358 have been destroyed. However all critical infrastructure in Jasper were successfully protected including the hospital, the library and the firehall. We are grateful to our responders efforts to contain the fire, minimize the damage and begin to restore essential utilities.
We are empathetic to the residents and businesses seeking more information on specific details on the extent of damage. We are working hard to verify this information and hope to release it soon.
We know people are seeing images on media and social media but what we know about fire incidents is getting the information right is paramount. It takes time to get this information correct, we understand your frustrations and we will publicly share more information when we are in a better position to do so. We want to avoid telling people they lost their home when they didn’t, or saying they didn’t lose their home when they did.
We are finalizing a list of addresses of damaged structures and intend to release it shortly
For individuals who may have left pets behind, the Bylaw Officer will take them to Hinton SPCA. You can call or text 780-852-5518 for updates.
This is the last update for today, July 26. We will resume updates in the morning.