In the face of extreme danger, Diamond Valley firefighters are continuing their critical work amid the wildfire crisis in Jasper.
Six firefighters and two vehicles — a bush truck and a tender apparatus — were sent to Jasper on the night of July 24, said Diamond Valley Fire Rescue Chief TJ Moore.
According to Diamond Valley Fire Rescue, the firefighters currently in Jasper are lieutenants Ethan Gardner and Nick Warkman, senior firefighters Jim Olien and Sonya Levear, and firefighters Andy Scott and Josh Norton.
On Aug. 2, the fire department announced that Scott and Norton were sent to Jasper as replacements for senior firefighter Tom Kirk and firefighter Daniel Black, both of whom returned to Diamond Valley that morning.
The department's deployment likely won't be ending anytime soon, as Diamond Valley Fire Rescue is in Jasper on a "primary tasking," according to Gardner.
"Diamond Valley has been privileged, in some of these tasks, that we've been more front lined," he said.
With the townsite's fires having been extinguished as of July 27, the crew's focus continues to be securing the townsite and protecting critical infrastructure.
According to Parks Canada, 358 structures in Jasper out of a total of 1,113, or just over 30 per cent, have been destroyed.
"To the people of Jasper, even with everything that's been going on for them, they've been such a hospitable community and we cannot thank them enough for the feeling that we have and the pleasure that it's been to be able to help them," Gardner said.
