Jasper Wildfire Complex
and consistent communication, when possible, was critical to gauge morale and readiness as the crisis evolved. 2. Maintaining Organizational Continuity With the community evacuated, maintaining operational capacity required flexibility and trust. Remote team members outside the evacuation zone became critical to maintaining essential communications and coordination – especially in the acute response stage. Access credentials for all systems and accounts were secured to protect continuity. Leadership adopted a flexible, adaptive approach to workload, enabling gradual re-engagement as individuals achieved personal stability. TOURISM JASPER TRANSITIONED TO AN AMPLIFICATION ROLE, RESHARING VERIFIED UPDATES FROM PARKS CANADA AND THE MUNICIPALITY OF JASPER TO MAINTAIN FACTUAL ACCURACY AND PUBLIC TRUST.
EXTERNAL PRIORITIES 1. Managing Media and Public Communications Tourism Jasper immediately paused all paid campaigns and promotional activity to allow for incident response messages to have priority and to support response efforts. A centralized crisis landing page was launched to direct visitors and media to verified information from Parks Canada and the Municipality of Jasper, helping to reduce misinformation and speculation. Early in the crisis, Tourism Jasper issued a single social media post acknowledging the tragedy and thanking first responders. The post focused on community, resilience, and patience rather than logistics or promotion. This message served two essential purposes: it reassured displaced business owners and residents that the DMO understood the magnitude of the loss, and it informed potential visitors that Jasper was not open for travel while requesting patience and understanding.
Destinations International CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS HANDBOOK
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