These outdoor guides just lost their homes in a wildfire. They believe in their town’s rebirth

Gratitude is top of mind for him right now as his wife, three children and their dog are all safe after a harrowing journey trying to escape out-of-control fires that still surround Jasper and burn within the largest national park in the Canadian Rockies.

But emotional exhaustion underlies the enormity of what many Jasperites are feeling now as the largest wildfire in Jasper National Park in more than a century continues to upend their lives and the majestic landscape they call home. The Gillese family lost a home that was still under construction.

Gillese, an expedition guide, said he was asked duringa trip through the park recently whether he was worried about wildfires.

“Ironically, I said no,” said Gillese. “We’ve got helicopters, we’ve got tons of resources that were dedicated to the park and despite that, the conditions were so prime and with strong winds, lightning strikes close to town, all this, it was just unprecedented.”

James Gillese and his wife, Krista, are pictured with their children on the porch of what would have been their new home.

And yet just days later, Gillese, who was away on a days-long river trip in British Columbia when the fire approached Jasper, received the news from his wife, Krista, that they were being evacuated with some urgency as the town was under threat.

“I don’t think anybody really thought that it would be that quick for the town to go from being evacuated to burned in 24 to 48 hours,” said Gillese.

Canadian officials say about a third of the structures in the town of Jasper have been destroyed by fire. Those buildings include single family homes and apartment buildings, as well as HI Jasper, a hostel built in 2019, and other businesses within the booming tourism industry tied closely to Jasper National Park.

The residents and their livelihoods will recover, officials say.

“Jasper is grieving right now,” Tyler Riopel, CEO of Tourism Jasper, wrote in a statement released on July 29, noting the strength of the community.

“Jasperites will be back to rebuild and when they do, one of the best ways to help them in the long-term will be to spend within the town. Eat in our restaurants, stay in our hotels, use our services, explore with our outfitters, rediscover Jasper.”

The blaze tore through the Gillese house that was under construction in Jasper, Alberta.

‘We’re all together, that’s what matters’

Gillese and his family, now reunited, are staying with relatives in Edmonton, Alberta, and they say they have no idea when they will be allowed to return.

Thankfully, Gillese says, the rental unit they were living in while their new house was being built is standing and that means they still have their personal possessions.

Gillese said his eldest son, Liam, poignantly reminded him of not only the loss their community had suffered, but the good fortune they’ve had: No one lost their lives or was hurt in the fire.

“He said he was thinking a lot about the town and his friends and all his friends that have lost their homes, so that was really quite mature of him, for a 7 year-old, but also said at the same time, ‘That’s OK, we’re all together, that’s what matters,’” said Gillese, with some emotion, as he contemplated all his kids have been through.

Canadian officials say the fire will likely burn for several months more. The town of Jasper remains off limits to most residents, and the national park is closed for the foreseeable future. More than 20,000 people remain evacuated.

A massive threat

Alberta officials say a combination of factors fueled the fire, including weeks of high temperatures, forests that were already dried out, strong winds and then lightning strikes that fueled an already fierce inferno.

“The simple fact is that sometimes there are no tools or resources capable of overcoming a wildfire of the magnitude that we face,” said Ron Hallman with Parks Canada during a news update in late July.

And yet many residents, national park employees and government officials say the town of Jasper and Jasper National Park were as prepared as any place could be for this type of wildfire.

For decades, Parks Canada says, it has been working on mitigation including removing dead trees, thinning the landscape, planting more fire-resistant trees and building up firefighting and monitoring resources.

“Had we not done that, there would be no more Jasper today. This jewel that we have as part of the national parks network would be simply gone,” said Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s environment minister during a news briefing in the province of Alberta earlier this week.

Jasper is ‘being reborn’

Ryan Titchener is thankful for the “jewel” that remains, even though his home has been burned to the ground.

Titchener has lived in Jasper most of his adult life but was unprepared for what he saw outside his window when the evacuation order came.

The only possession Ryan Titchener grabbed from his apartment was his guitar.

“I opened up the blinds and then could see this ominous, kind of orange glow in the sky and the ash falling down and then I could see the streets already at that point were jam packed with cars and people just trying to inch their way out of town,” said Titchener during a phone interview this week.

He describes what came next as “organized chaos” as thousands packed what they could and filed out of town.

“I ran back up to the apartment to kind of have a goodbye and a look around, wasn’t expecting never to see it again and the only personal item I grabbed was my guitar. I was playing it last night, I’m pretty glad to have it actually,” Titchener said.

“What has been lost is a lot,” says Titchener, explaining that while a third of structures have been destroyed, many of those were multiple dwelling residential buildings.

“We’d have nothing left if it wasn’t for all that prevention,” he adds.

People involved in the outdoor expedition community have organized GoFundMe campaigns to help Titchener and Gillese recover.

Titchener, a former alpine and rock-climbing guide who suffered a spinal cord injury while climbing several years ago, now works as an interpretive guide, a ski patroller and an operations foreman at a nearby ski hill.

He says he is dedicated to seeing even more travelers, including those with disabilities, experience Jasper in the years to come.

Gillese and Titchener, who are friends and have worked together guiding in the past, expressed their gratitude for the support they’ve received from so many people across Canada and beyond.

They say that support will help them rebuild the town of Jasper and the tourism industry upon which they both rely.

“I have been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support during a very difficult time,” said Gillese.

Titchener echoes his friend’s sentiment and others who say they will rebuild Jasper and the tourism industry that is its lifeblood.

“Jasper wasn’t destroyed, it’s being reborn – and that’s a much different thing. Being destroyed means it will no longer exist, like my possessions,” he says.

“We’re going to see that regrowth, of not just the reconstruction of our town but also the natural process of that forest recovery and it’s going to make it a much more diverse and actually healthier landscape.”

The Gillese family is currently seeking news about the progress of the wildfire in Jasper National Park, as they are unsure when they can return to their rental unit.

The tourism industry in Jasper is greatly affected by the wildfire, with businesses like HI Jasper and other outdoor expedition companies relying on visitors to recover and rebuild.