Residents in Jasper are slowly learning what is still standing in their community, and what’s lost.
The owner of the Bears Paw Bakery says while her business survived, her home is gone. Having personally seen where the wildfire hit the town while responding to the blaze as a volunteer firefighter.
“I was looking at the remains of my home yesterday and it struck me that often we see these things on the news and it’s from an earthquake, and you’re questioning, ‘Is there a body there? Does someone need rescuing?’ That is not the case here. This is stuff and it sucks cause all my stuff that I really like is gone but it’s just stuff,” explained Kimberley Stark.
Stark has seen firsthand the devastation the wildfire has dealt to Jasper. However she says, she doesn’t feel comfortable sharing photos of the town until residents are made aware of the state of their homes.
Adding her and Jasper’s firefighters did all they could until crews were ordered to evacuate.
“That was definitely difficult, hard to watch at times, helpless a lot of times. But I know that my crew of three, we definitely scored some really good wins. I’m really proud of that. I’m so happy I got to help my fellow Jasperites,” explained Stark.
While Stark says she’s constantly reminded of things she’s missing from her home, she explains that she’s trying to be strong for her young family.
“My girls are all four and I have not told them yet. I’m struggling with that. I feel I need to be in a better place. It’s okay for them to see me cry, we lost our family pet last year and they saw a lot of tears from me, but I also need to be more of a pillar than I am right now.”