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'Monster' fires may have destroyed half of historic Canadian town

Huge, fast-moving wildfires have destroyed up to half of the historic Canadian town of Jasper, officials say, as firefighters try to save as many buildings as possible. Entire streets have been levelled by the blazes in Alberta province, with video showing smouldering rubble where homes once stood. Cooling temperatures brought some relief on Thursday, but park authorities said the fires were still out of control and further warm weather was forecast. Meanwhile, there are hundreds of active blazes in neighbouring British Columbia, while fires are burning in western US states including California and Utah. While no deaths have been reported, some 20,000 tourists and 5,000 residents have fled the mountainous area in Alberta province - a hugely popular tourist spot. Some 36,000 hectares (89,000 acres) of land has so far been affected, Jasper National Park reported late on Thursday night local time - adding that neighbouring communities were not at risk. It said that efforts to map the fires had been complicated by factors including strong winds, the extreme nature of the fire, and smoke.

BBC World News