LAKE LOUISE – Several GoFundMe campaigns and community donation drives are being organized for staff who lost everything in the blaze at the Charleston residence in Lake Louise this week.
One person is in RCMP custody following the fire, which started around noon on Monday (July 3) and took several hours to bring under control.
The three-storey building has been declared a total loss. The incident remains under RCMP investigation and police say they will provide an update by the end of the day Tuesday.
Michelle Little is one of several people who has started a GoFundMe account for family and friends whose personal belongings were burned.
“My niece just moved in and was one of the first to discover the fire, pulled the alarm, and went across the road to get help from the RCMP,” said Little of Pickering, Ontario, on a GoFundMe page set up for her niece.
“Many others helped to get everyone to safety and were trying to help put out the fire … Everyone got out with the clothes on their backs, and since many of the employees are international, their passports and work visas have been lost as well.”
A clothing drive bin has been set in the Wilson Room of the Lake Louise Inn to collect donations – clothing, towels, toiletries etc.
Canmore’s Le fournil Bakery is also collecting donations on Tuesday, July 4, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and on Thursday, July 6, from 8 a.m. to 3 p. m. The team will drive the donations, which can be dropped off via the back door of the bakery, to Lake Louise after closing both days.
“Many workers have lost all their belongings – clothing, paperwork, gear, memories, etc – and they’re still waiting for answers and to see what’s next,” states the bakery on a social media post.
“Unfortunately, there are plenty of things we cannot replace or bring back, but we can help somewhat with what can be useful at the moment – clothing, socks, underwear, toiletries, food items, etc.”
At approximately 12 p.m. on Monday, Lake Louise RCMP along with local fire departments and EMS responded to the fire at the Lake Louise ski resort-owned staff residence. Known locally as Chucktown, the building was evacuated.
Everyone made it out of the burning building safely, but one person was injured and taken to hospital.
Officials with the Lake Louise ski resort and summer sightseeing gondola say they are “shocked and devastated” by the fire.
They said their thoughts are with all those affected by this terrible incident and are committed to providing assistance and resources to staff.
Dan Markham, the resort’s communications director, said they now believe about 165 people have been displaced as a result of the fire.
He said there is no timeline for reopening the summer sightseeing and gondola operation as staff deal with the loss, although the resort is looking at a three- to four-day window.
“We are evaluating things daily,” he said.
Markham said people worked the phones to find everyone a place to stay.
“We’ve managed to find beds for the majority of staff at different hotels in Banff and Lake Louise,” he said.
Buses transported people from the scene of the fire on Village Road to a muster point at Lake Louise ski hill, where they were asked to sign in.
By about 5 p.m., there were still about 150 to 200 people sitting around at the muster point at the ski hill's Whiskey Jack Lodge, where they were being given food and drinks.
Banff's fire department responded to help their counterparts in Lake Louise with three vehicles/apparatus and 12 firefighters, as did Canmore Fire-Rescue with a ladder truck and crew of four to the structure fire.
STARS air ambulance was initially dispatched to the incident but was stood down shortly thereafter.
The story will be updated as more information becomes available.
