Jasper residents who lost homes in wildfire can register for bus tours online

The Alberta government launched a registration portal for Jasper residents to tour the townsite on buses "in the coming days."

Jasperites can register for the tours on alberta.ca/emergency.

"For now, the tour will be limited to people whose homes have been lost or damaged and we will have to keep everyone on the bus while inside the national park," Alberta minister Mike Ellis told reporters Friday afternoon.

• Complete coverage of the 2024 Alberta wildfire season

When asked why the tours haven't happened or why they're not open to all residents, the province cited safety reasons, such as the active wildfire in the national park, unsafe debris and smoldering embers.

"There are dangers but we're trying to minimize those dangers," Ellis said.

The wildfire south of Jasper remains out of control and has grown by about 7,500 hectares due to hot and dry weather.

Recent rain has helped the wildfire situation in northern Alberta, but the risk remains "very high" in southern Alberta, minister Todd Loewen said.

"The weather forecast for the next week predicts warmer and drier conditions across the province, which could lead to increased wildfire activity and new wildfires over the long weekend and into next week."

There were 115 wildfires, 18 out of control, in the forest protection area as of 2 p.m.

With files from The Canadian Press