Alberta actually collaborates really well when it comes to not only wildfires but emergency management. In fact, in emergency preparedness, especially when an emergency is called, I've never had to deal with any partisan issues. We deal with the emergency and we work very closely together. I have to say that my closest relationship is actually with Minister Ellis. It's one reason that when we were informed of what was taking place, I decided to go to Edmonton to work with Minister Ellis and to coordinate our resources directly.
They made all resources available as quickly as possible, and again I want to commend them for their efforts. The premier was with us when we got that briefing, and I have to say that the briefing we got, the preparation and the work done were actually far greater than I witnessed in any other place.
If it weren't for the fire-smarting, preparation and training, the entire town could have been lost. The interesting part was that the Parks Canada folks had Canada task force 2 from Calgary there and also Alberta Wildfire working very closely. Very direct questions were asked. In fact, everybody talked about not only how well the preparation was taking place, but some members even talked about how they need to look at utilizing this in other parts of the province and even across the country.