Regional fire fighters hold the line in Battle for Jasper

With fire crews responding from around the world, regional fire crews including students from Lakeland College’s Emergency Training Centre are holding the line against the Jasper wildfires. 

Crews from Vermilion River, the Town of Vermilion, Wainwright, and others made the trek along with 27 Lakeland College trainees and six staff. 

Dean Shawn McKerry says they brought out four fire trucks, an ambulance, three pickup trucks, and a bus to join in the effort. The young firefighters drove overnight when they got the call from the province and arrived in Jasper at 5 a.m. on Thursday, July 25. 

“Our students were able to protect and save one home themselves. We have been doing a lot of property conservation. Putting out hotspots in basements and within close tree-lines of the property.”

McKerry sees the experience as being of tremendous benefit to the college trainees. 

“We have been able to engage the students in a lot of community activities, where they are going around and setting back up patios, helping collect all the garbage and debris that has been blown around, helping with the food donations, like unloading pallets of food and supplies. And anything else that they can help with to bring Jasper back to normal.” 

The Lakeland College fire team will leave Jasper at 8 p.m., Monday for the Incident and Command Centre in Hinton. After debriefing, they will leave for Vermilion and hope to arrive around 2 a.m., Tuesday, July 30. 

The team has welcomed the chance to learn and work with regional, national and global firefighters who have pitched in to save Jasper in what has been described as the worst fires in 100 years. 

County of Vermilion River, Town of Vermilion, Irma, Paradise Valley, Minburn, Wainwright, and Vegreville were among the regional fire crews who joined the effort.