Banff’s Sunshine Village clearing out guests as crews tackle nearby wildfire
CALGARY — A popular Rocky Mountain resort in Banff National Park was preparing Thursday to move out its guests to make way for crews fighting a wildfire raging in the nearby backcountry.
Sunshine Village, a ski hill that also offers summer hiking on the Alberta-B.C. boundary, was about 2 1/2 kilometres from the flames, but was not under threat.
However, about 150 people staying at Sunshine’s hotel were being told they would have to leave by midday Friday, said resort spokeswoman Kendra Scurfield.
Parks Canada incident commander Rick Kubian said the property was being set up as a staging area for firefighters because it provides better access to the Verdant Creek fire, which covered 25 to 30 square kilometres in Kootenay National Park and Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park in B.C.