The picturesque town of Jasper, Alberta, was devastated by a wildfire that engulfed Jasper National Park, Joe Biden addressed the nation for the first time after announcing he will not run for re-election as U.S. president, and the Earth set back-to-back records for the hottest day on record.
The Bank of Canada also made its second consecutive interest rate cut and signaled that more cuts could be on the way.
Here’s a look at some of the biggest stories that happened this week.
Jasper wildfires: Why rebuilding an Alberta town could be a ‘logistical nightmare’
As wildfires raged through Jasper this week, there are growing concerns about the immediate cost to the community and the “logistical nightmare” of recovery ahead.
Warren Singh, executive director of the Alberta Construction Association, said it’s too early to fully understand the extent of the damage and that just assessing it could take up to six months.
Pointing to the example of Fort McMurray in Alberta, which was razed by a ferocious wildfire in 2016, Singh said Jasper’s recovery could also take five years or more, depending on the damage.
He said rebuilding communities like Jasper could be a “logistical nightmare,” involving sorting out what’s needed in terms of cleanup, critical damage to infrastructure and dealing with the effects of the fires on the local environment.
Jasper wildfire: how quickly flames engulfed a town
The fast-spreading wildfires took less than two days to reach the town, where several structures were burned Wednesday night.
Parks Canada was the first to report two wildfires in Jasper National Park, one north of the town and one south of it, late Monday night. Before the night was out, the entire town and park were ordered evacuated as crews struggled to battle the flames, which were being fanned by high winds and dry conditions.
Some 25,000 people were evacuated from the park, including about 5,000 residents of the resort town.
By Wednesday evening, both wildfires had engulfed the town and merged into one blaze.
How to File Insurance Claims After a Wildfire
While the extent of the damage is unclear, images and videos of the destruction caused by the wildfires in Jasper, Alberta, paint a grim picture.
Evacuations were in place before the fire reached the town and as more information becomes available in the coming days, many will be looking to find out what comes next if their homes, property or businesses have been affected.
However, the process of filing insurance claims can often be complicated. Experts say the first step is simple: contact your agent.
How will the Bank of Canada’s rate cut affect your mortgage?
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Canadians with mortgages and those preparing for a run on the housing market have many decisions to make following back-to-back interest rate cuts by the Bank of Canada.
The central bank on Wednesday cut its interest rate by 25 basis points to 4.5 percent. This is reflected in the prime rates of Canada’s major banks, which fell to 6.7 percent following the decision.
In the mortgage space, some Canadians will see an immediate reduction in their next monthly payments.
Loblaw boycott had ‘minor’ impact on sales, says Per Bank CEO
The boycott of Loblaw stores in May had only a “minor” financial impact on Canada’s largest supermarkets, according to the company’s chief executive.
Loblaw Co. Ltd. on Thursday reported second-quarter earnings, including the month of May, when the grocer was the target of a popular boycott campaign to express frustration over rising food prices.
During a conference call accompanying the earnings call, Loblaw CEO Per Bank was asked about the impact of the move. He said “the overall financial impact was minor.”
This year, 4 in 10 US companies posted a fake job offer. Why?
With the Canadian labour market experiencing a surge in unemployment, Canadians are looking for work, but a new survey may send a warning to job seekers: some job postings from legitimate companies may not even be real.
The survey, Commissioned by career website Resume Builder and conducted by Pollfish in May, found that about 40 percent of companies had posted what was considered a “fake” job this year and three in 10 companies had what were described as fake listings active.
According to the career site, unlike a fraudulent job posting, a fake ad is when a legitimate company posts an ad for a position it “did not intend to fill,” meaning that even if you did get an interview, there was no chance you would get the job.
Biden says it’s time to ‘pass the torch’ in first remarks since campaign ends
US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday it was time to “pass the torch” to a new generation of leaders as he continued to pursue his priorities for the remainder of his presidency after deciding not to run for re-election.
In a prime-time address from the Oval Office that at times felt like a farewell — his first public remarks since announcing he was ending his campaign on Sunday — Biden defended his record, saying it had been the “privilege of my life” to have worked in politics for five decades. He also praised his vice president, Kamala Harris, whom he has endorsed to succeed him as the Democratic nominee to face Donald Trump in November’s election.
“I revere this office,” he said, reflecting on the presidents who preceded him. “I love my country more.”
How unusual is Biden’s decision not to run again? A look at other candidates who have served only one term
Joe Biden’s decision to drop out of the 2024 presidential race puts him on a short list of American presidents who could have run again but decided not to.
Biden announced his withdrawal on Sunday after weeks of pressure to step aside, forcing the Democratic Party to consider a new candidate to take on Donald Trump just months before the election.
“It’s just unprecedented for a party’s candidacy to explode in this way,” said University of Toronto political science professor Ryan Hurl.
Trump vs. Harris? Here’s what recent polls say about the potential showdown
With Joe Biden’s resignation and his support for Kamala Harris for the US presidency, the 2024 electoral landscape has taken an unexpected turn.
But what do recent polls reveal about Donald Trump’s chances against his potential new challenger? The results are mixed: some polls show Democrats have a favorable opinion of Harris, while others suggest a close race between her and Trump.
Earth set a record for the hottest day in history, and broke it a day later
July 21 marked the record for the hottest day on record on Earth, a record that was broken the following day, on Monday, July 22.
According to data from the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), the global average daily temperature hit a new record of 17.09°C on Sunday, slightly exceeding the previous record of 17.08°C set on 6 July 2023.
The record stood for one day.
On Monday, the global average daily temperature reached a new record of 17.15°C.
As electric scooter use increases, emergency room doctors say they are seeing ‘devastating’ injuries
Roaming the streets from Vancouver’s west coast to Nova Scotia’s eastern shores, electric scooters are quickly making their way into Canadian cities, embraced as a convenient and eco-friendly mode of transportation.
However, this newfound popularity brings with it growing safety concerns, as emergency room doctors warn about the dangers of using electric scooters due to a reported increase in related injuries.
“As emergency physicians across the country, we are seeing incredible injuries caused by electric scooters,” said Dr. Raghu Venugopal, an emergency physician in Toronto.
