(Bloomberg) -- A fast-moving wildfire has ripped through the Rocky Mountain resort town of Jasper, destroying homes and businesses and threatening key infrastructure in the evacuated Alberta community. “The wildfire is still out of control and crews are working in dangerous conditions to try and protect critical infrastructure in the town,” Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Thursday in a media briefing. “We share a sense of loss with all of those who live in the town, who care for it and who have helped build it.
” The week-old wildfire spread out of control on Monday, prompting authorities to order town residents and Jasper National Park visitors to leave. Around 25,000 people had been evacuated as of Thursday, according to government agencies. The Jasper fire, dubbed Utopia, was reported a week ago and is believed to have started from a lightning strike.
High temperatures, dry conditions and lightning storms have been plaguing much of western North America this month, causing numerous wildfires including in the Western Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. Jasper is at the heart of a huge national park in the Canadian Rockies that shares its name and at the northern end of the Icefields Parkway, a highway that connects the wilderness area to Banff National Park in the south. The town of 4,100 residents is prime tourist spot and is known for its natural beauty and wildlife, including grizzly bears, elk and moose.
Almost 2.5 million people visited Jaspe.