The former mayor of a northern Alberta town ravaged by wildfire more than a decade ago says community ties will be key as Jasper, Alta., recovers from the blaze that swept through last month.

Wildfires destroyed 358 homes and businesses in the Rocky Mountain tourist hot spot three weeks ago, totalling an estimated $283 million in lost property value.

In 2011, the toll on Slave Lake, Alta., about 250 kilometres northwest of Edmonton, was of a similar scale. A recklessly or deliberately set wildfir…