Waterton townsite, after the Kenow Wildfire, 2017.

This image shows a view looking south toward the Waterton townsite in southern Alberta after the Kenow Wildfire burned parts of Waterton National Park in early September, 2017. In the foreground, a patch of low earth is scorched black and barren. In the middle distance, a blue and white helicopter sits beside an asphalt roadway on a green patch of lawn just beyond the area of ground burned by the fire. Farther away, the historic Prince of Wales Hotel sits majestically on a hill beside Waterton Lake, with soaring mountains and blue sky in the background. The hillside around the hotel shows a mix of unburnt trees and patches of forest scorched black by the fire, but the building itself appears untouched. The mountains in the background also show burned and green patches on their forested slopes.
Taken on September 16, 2017, this photo illustrates how close the Kenow Wildfire came to seriously damaging the mountain town and its infrastructure. Fortunately, most of the town was spared thanks to proactive planning, fuel breaks and other preventative measures implemented by Parks Canada and supporting local agencies.