In the news today: Jasper fire report cites provincial interference

Winnipeg Free Press

18-07-2025

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed…
Jasper fire report cites provincial interference
A report into a wildfire that devastated the Rocky Mountain resort town of Jasper last summer says crews did their best but command and control was hampered by the Alberta government.
The report, issued Thursday, was commissioned by the town and based on surveyed participants and firefighters who battled the wind-whipped blaze that destroyed a third of buildings in the community located in Jasper National Park.
While the report says it wasn't meant to assign blame, it notes that town and Parks Canada officials trained together and had an integrated command structure, but things became challenging when the province got involved.
It says the Alberta government, while not jurisdictionally responsible to lead the crisis, made things more difficult with regular requests for information and by seeking to exercise decision-making authority.
The report says the interference disrupted the focus of incident commanders and forced them to spend precious time managing inquiries and issues instead of fighting the fire and leading the re-entry of residents.
Here's what else we're watching…
B.C. restores funding for girl with Batten disease
The mother of a nine-year-old Vancouver Island girl who has an extremely rare neurodegenerative disease says she's grateful her daughter will get her medication back.
The British Columbia government has restored funding for Charleigh Pollock for the drug Brineura, which costs about $1 million a year.
Health Minister Josie Osborne said on Thursday she believes health professionals should make decisions about care, and a letter she received from Batten disease experts in the United States detailed a 'significant disagreement' over the drug.
Charleigh's mother Jori Fales posted a video on social media, saying she was 'overwhelmed' by the decision from the province.
The government had cut off the funding last month, saying an expert committee determined that the drug was no longer helping to slow the progress of the girl's disease.
Federal UFO data analysis needed, report says
Systematic government collection and analysis of data about mysterious sightings in the sky could help Canada better prepare for incidents like the sudden appearance of several high-altitude balloons over North America two years ago, says a report from the federal science adviser.
One of the balloons, which wafted above western Canada in early 2023 before being shot down off the U.S. coast, apparently originated from China and carried sophisticated equipment.
The balloon episodes generated intense public speculation before fading from the headlines.
The final report of the science adviser's Sky Canada Project says the incidents highlight the importance of government investigation of what appears in the sky and how difficult it is to distinguish between natural occurrences, common technological devices and potential security concerns.
The report, released this week, says Ottawa should assign a federal department or agency to manage public data on celestial sightings and set up a service to collect testimonies, investigate cases and release analyses.
Open the door to cheaper European EVs: advocates
The federal government has stopped the world's cheapest electric vehicles — made in China — from coming into Canada with a 100 per cent tariff, so advocates are pushing to make it easier for automakers to bring in cheaper ones from Europe.
'Right now, there is a blockage, saying that for safety reasons they cannot let these cars in,' said Daniel Breton, head of Electric Mobility Canada.
He's pushing to have the federal government rule that EVs deemed safe by European regulators don't need to be re-certified and modified for Canadian standards. The potentially costly process can be a barrier to bringing more compact and affordable EVs to the Canadian market, though demand might be the bigger hurdle.
Attempts to lower the barriers to cheaper vehicles comes as EV sales have been disrupted by the abrupt end of government rebate programs, while tariffs and U.S. moves to end EV supports and mandates are further destabilizing the market.
Breton said that allowing a more open flow of vehicles from Europe would fit in well with a push to strengthen and diversify trade ties with the region, as Prime Minister Mark Carney has said he hopes to do, but Transport Canada says it's not so simple.
Vancouver's urban orcas create community
Chatchawan Jaksuwong says he used to feel empty when he looked at the ocean.
But after encounters with whales in the urban waters of Vancouver the photographer now feels a deep sense of connection, and he's found community with fellow enthusiasts.
Jaksuwong is among a growing community of whale fans who track and share the surging number of sightings around Vancouver.
Experts say the return of orcas, humpbacks and other marine mammals has been decades in the making, following the end of commercial whaling in British Columbia in the late 1960s along with the wind-down of the large-scale culling of seals and sea lions, the primary food for certain killer whales.
Andrew Trites, who leads the Marine Mammal Research Unit at the University of B.C., says whales are the 'ambassadors of the Salish Sea,' and their recovery is an opportunity to boost public awareness and encourage protections for their habitat.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 18, 2025.