Jasper points to 'mischaracterization' of wildfire report after Alberta premier calls for apology

OTTAWA — The top administrator in Jasper, Alta., downplayed claims Friday that a report his town commissioned into last summer’s devastating wildfire was about blaming the province for making things worse, after the premier called on the town to apologize.

Jasper Chief Administrative Officer Bill Given told the National Post that the initial media coverage of the report hasn’t given the full picture of its contents, although he said he stands by the report.

“As with any comprehensive report, looking at any one part of it in isolation can easily lead to a mischaracterization of the overall content,” said Given in an interview. “I would encourage everyone to take a look at the report in its entirety, so they have a clear understanding of what its intended scope is (and) what was out of scope.”

Given also stressed that there were “a lot of strengths” in the wildfire response, including contributions from the province.

Several news outlets on Thursday, the day the report was released, highlighted some elements of the report that said the Alberta government had complicated firefighting efforts when it added itself to a previously established command structure set up between the town and Parks Canada.

Smith called both the report and its coverage in the media “disheartening” on Friday, saying the province was unfairly characterized as a clumsy interloper in wildfire relief efforts.

“The report and the media response not only appears politically motivated, it is also misguided, given its selective framing and failure to acknowledge the tireless work of provincial emergency personnel and leadership,” wrote Smith in a statement co-signed by three of her cabinet ministers.

She also said that the report glossed over the federal government’s complicity in the fire, specifically its failure to clear out highly flammable dead trees and other combustible debris from the area over the years.

Smith said at an unrelated announcement about Alberta’s Heritage Fund that she hoped the town would apologize for the report’s contents.

The 57-page report doesn’t expressly attribute blame to the province but suggests at multiple points that provincial officials delayed firefighting efforts at the height of the blaze.

“Provincial involvement added complexity to the response, as the Province of Alberta, though not jurisdictionally responsible to lead the incident, regularly requested information and sought to exercise decision-making authority,” reads one line.

The report also says that the province’s involvement created “political challenges that disrupted the focus of Incident Commanders, leading to time spent managing inquiries and issues instead of directing the wildfire response and reentry.”

Jasper is a specialized municipality within Jasper National Park, a sprawling protected area administered by Parks Canada.

A Unified Command comprising Parks Canada and the municipality led efforts to fight back the wildfire, although the fire ultimately destroyed one-third of the townsite and thousands of hectares of surrounding forest.

A spokesperson with the town of Jasper said the community hasn’t forgotten the province’s contribution.

“We deeply appreciate the role Alberta Wildfire, (the Alberta Emergency Management Agency) and other provincial teams played during the response, and we’re grateful for the Government of Alberta’s continued support throughout the recovery process,” wrote the spokesperson in an email.

The spokesperson declined to respond directly to the premier’s comments and would not say whether an apology was forthcoming.

Federal Emergency Management Minister Eleanor Olszewski said Friday that she was reviewing the report and would have more to say in the coming days.

Olszewski also said that she didn’t “think it would be helpful” for her to discuss Smith’s comments.

She added that she will be in Jasper next week to mark the one-year anniversary of the blaze.

National Post

rmohamed@postmedia.com

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