It didnB次元官网网址檛 take long for Namneet Singh to find full-time employment again, after a fire in Jasper, Alta., last week destroyed the hotel he had worked at for more than a year.

Singh, who was among hundreds of temporary foreign workers earning a living in the picturesque Rocky Mountain town, was on shift when the community was ordered to evacuate the night of July 22.

All 25,000 people in Jasper National Park, including 5,000 residents of the townsite, were given five hours to get out when flames began cutting off roads and escape routes. Two days later, fire destroyed a third of the townB次元官网网址檚 buildings, leaving Singh and others in limbo.

Now staying in Edmonton, Singh, who was raised in India, is working at the Jasper Employment and Education Centre to help other displaced foreign workers get new passports and other documents in order to get employment insurance or look for new jobs.

He helps them better the odds of getting work by helping them apply for open-work permits rather than permits that are employer-specific.

ItB次元官网网址檚 also providing a distraction for Singh, as heB次元官网网址檚 had trouble sleeping since the fire.

B次元官网网址淎t night when I try to sleep, IB次元官网网址檓 having nightmares,B次元官网网址� Singh said in an interview.

B次元官网网址淓ven if I donB次元官网网址檛 have my documents, I want other people to get their documents as soon as possible, so that they can have hope they can get a new work permit, so that they can start working and getting back to their normal life.B次元官网网址�

The employment centre is in a temporary office inside All SaintsB次元官网网址� Anglican Cathedral in downtown Edmonton.

The centreB次元官网网址檚 executive director, Heidi Veluw, who employed Singh part time before the fire, said itB次元官网网址檚 likely her organization will be operating for a while out of the church.

Veluw said the centre is seeing 90 people per day, many of whom were previously using the organizationB次元官网网址檚 services in Jasper.

B次元官网网址淭heir places of employment, or both their house and their employment, has burned,B次元官网网址� she said.

Veluw said Jasper is home to about 1,500 temporary foreign workers in retail, food service, hospitality and many other industries.

Workers on permits that only allow them to work in specific jobs face the biggest hurdle, she said, especially if their employerB次元官网网址檚 business was burned in the fire.

She said the goal is to get them open work permits, but applying for the documents is complicated and lengthy.

B次元官网网址淛ust like any government form, some questions are just confusing for anybody,B次元官网网址� she said.

Immigration Canada is trying to make it easier. It has temporarily waived the fees for foreign workers to apply to have their personal documents replaced and their work permits changed.

The City of Edmonton has set up an evacuation centre for those from Jasper with no place to stay. There are also reception centres in Calgary and Grande Prairie.

Jasper officials have yet to provide a timeline for when evacuees can go back. Singh said his return is uncertain.

B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 even have a home there now,B次元官网网址� he said.

B次元官网网址淚t will be just ashes.B次元官网网址�

Jack Farrell, The Canadian Press