The Canadian Press

Cool and wet weather is making a difference in Jasper National Park.

The park posted a statement on X late Thursday night saying cooler temperatures and up to 15 millimetres of rain since midnight had led to minimal fire activity.

The park says due to the rainfall, fire behaviour is likely to calm over the next 72 hours.

While more rain is expected Friday, temperatures are supposed to return to the mid 20s by Saturday, which the park says will lead to an increase in fire activity.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says up to half of the buildings in Jasper may have been burned after wildfires swept through the evacuated community.

Here are the latest developments on the wildfire situation in Alberta (all times are MT):

--

10:13 p.m.

Cool and wet weather is making a difference in Jasper National Park.

A statement from the park Thursday night says up to 15 millimetres of rain has fallen in the area since midnight, leading to minimal fire spread.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on social media that Ottawa has approved Alberta’s request for federal assistance after a fast-moving wildfire hit Jasper National Park and its townsite late Wednesday.

The park's social media account says the fire has caused significant loss within the townsite, but the specific locations or neighbourhoods affected are not being reported.

On the social media platform X, the account for Fairmont's Jasper Park Lodge says the flames have reached the hotel's grounds, but the extent of damage, if any, is not yet known.

The Bank of Canada cut its key interest rate for a second consecutive time on Wednesday, but warned the path back to two per cent inflation may be uneven and would ultimately determine the pace of future rate cuts.

The central bank says its decision to lower its policy rate by a quarter percentage point was motivated by easing price pressures and weakening economic conditions.

Its key interest rate now stands at 4.5 per cent.

U.S. President Joe Biden is removing his name as the Democratic candidate in the November election following weeks of mounting pressure over the 81-year-old’s mental acuity and ability to win the faceoff with Republican rival Donald Trump. 

Biden says it has been his greatest honour to serve but he believes it is in the best interest of his party to stand down and focus solely on fulfilling his duties as president for the rest of his term.

From floods to Trump, otters with ice blocks to historic apologies in Saskatchewan, here's a look at some of this week's top news photos as selected by editors.

A global technology outage had grounded flights, disrupted hospitals and backed up border crossings in Canada on Friday, as reported issues persisted hours after the issues with Microsoft services were said to be getting fixed.

Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike said that the issue believed to be behind the outage was not a security incident or cyberattack.  The issue affected Microsoft 365 apps and services, and escalating disruptions continued after the technology company said it was gradually fixing it.

Two people have died after an outbreak of listeriosis triggered a national recall of certain plant-based milks, the Public Health Agency of Canada said Wednesday.

Silk brand almond milk, coconut milk, almond-coconut milk and oat milk were recalled earlier this month, as was Great Value brand almond milk.

Most of the recalled products have best-before dates up to and including Oct. 4. Recalled products should be thrown out or returned to the location where they were purchased.

The shadow of violence in the United States will be hanging over Canada's political scene this week in the wake of an attempted assassination on former president Donald Trump.

A shooting at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday left one rally attendee dead and two others critically injured, while the shooter was also killed.

Trump has said he's fine, and is now in Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention. 

Federal Court in Vancouver is to hear a case today from the Saskatchewan government asking for an injunction to stop the Canada Revenue Agency from collecting millions in carbon levy money.

Premier Scott Moe's government argues it's unconstitutional for Ottawa to take from its bank account, and that it's unfair for Saskatchewan to pay.

Earlier this year, Saskatchewan had stopped remitting the carbon levy on natural gas to Ottawa, after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau exempted home-heating oil users from paying.