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Wildfires ravaged the Jasper townsite and national park during the summer. File Photo/Canadian Press

Medicine Hat’s Jasper support to inform city plans

Sep 2, 2024 | 5:34 PM

Medicine Hat city council will hear on Tuesday that its support for Jasper will help inform many of its existing plans.

The city was involved early in the response efforts to help in the fight against a wildfire that ravaged Jasper’s townsite and national park in July and August.

Council will hear how the city coordinated the support for Jasper from eight municipalities in southern Alberta, according to a presentation included in Tuesday’s agenda.

Medicine Hat also provided direct support to Jasper for re-entry planning and operations.

When Jasper residents started re-entry in mid-August, Medicine Hat was there to help, assisting with set up, vendor management, security and ambassador support, according to the presentation.

The city will be able to take what they learned through helping out Jasper and apply it to its own plans, staff say.

Re-entry planning, “out of jurisdiction” reception centre management, getting utilities back online after a re-entry, social supports, evacuation management and waste management planning will all be improved, they say.

Council’s first public meeting in nearly seven weeks gets underway at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. It can be watched on the city’s YouTube channel or in-person at city hall.