As wildfires rage in Canada's Jasper National Park, structural firefighters are battling to save the town while thick smoke and evacuations create a surreal scene for the thousands of displaced residents and tourists.

The blaze, which broke through the park's southern boundary on Wednesday evening, has decimated parts of the town, leaving behind a smoky vista better suited to a post-apocalyptic blockbuster than a picturesque tourist haven. While most first responders and forest firefighters have been evacuated to the nearby town of Hinton for safety, structural firefighters are heroically staying behind to protect critical infrastructure. Meanwhile, the unprecedented wildfire season has already forced hundreds of thousands of Canadians to flee their homes this year. The rest of us aren’t much better off, struggling to tell whether we're looking at a scene from The Revenant or CNN.

James Eastham from Parks Canada confirmed that the community is filled with smoke and multiple structures have been lost, though the exact number remains unclear. In a dramatic turn of events, the firefighters are now tasked with not just saving homes but also critical infrastructure, including the wastewater treatment plant, communications facilities, and the Trans Mountain Pipeline. Because let's face it, cleaning basements full of ash doesn’t sound all that fun.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau assured Canadians that every necessary resource is being mobilized to combat the blaze. Meanwhile, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she was heartbroken by the situation, adding a sympathetic wince for good measure. As the firefighters soldier on, the gusty winds have been doing their best impersonation of a chaotic conductor, spreading the flames and changing perimeters faster than a cheetah on Red Bull.

The fire's rapid advance has left little time for effective firefighting techniques. Even the most hopeful sortie of helicopters and water bombers had to turn back due to dangerous flying conditions. Controlled burns, a strategy often used to reroute fires, also failed spectacularly. All eyes now turn to the forecasted rain, which is hoped will do what the human intervention could not – put a damper on things.

For those whose evacuation went smoothly – well, relatively smoothly – the journey was no easy feat. Leanne Maeva Joyeuse, a Jasper resident, recounted that it took her family 20 harrowing hours on the road to reach the Grand Prairie evacuation center. And we think rush hour traffic is bad!

As night set in, forest firefighters and others without self-contained breathing apparatuses were relocated to Hinton. It's a safety measure, and a logical one – safety first, after all. The northern fire was spotted approximately three miles from Jasper earlier in the day, prompting the sudden implementation of the relocation plan. It’s like playing a high-stakes game of tag, only with more adrenaline and less whimsy.

The town's population, including its 5,000 residents and some 20,000 park visitors, were ordered to evacuate on Monday night. A newsworthy exodus of epic proportions, indeed. For those keeping track at home, that's 245 people picked up from backcountry trails by helicopter earlier on Wednesday. Hopefully, someone remembered to pack the marshmallows and ghost stories.

Of course, Jasper isn't the only hot spot on the radar. Alberta is currently experiencing scorching temperatures that have forced another 7,500 people to flee remote communities. Civic-minded readers will note that there are about 177 wildfires currently raging across the province. Clearly, there's a boisterously fiery party making the rounds, and no one seems to be enjoying the festivities.

It's almost surreal to think that Jasper National Park, a designated World Heritage Site, can boast not just one, but multiple brushes with celebrity – from Marilyn Monroe in 1953 to a reality TV crew from 'The Bachelorette.' Yet now, the park's image is undergoing a dramatic transformation. Hopefully, the rain’s cameo appearance will be enough to change the storyline back to one where Jasper's real charm isn't its ashes but its grandeur and natural beauty.