A large storage building next to The Guild of Automotive Restorers on Bridge Street caught fire Monday morning.
Bradford West Gwillimbury Fire and Emergency Services responded to the call around 7 a.m.
Firefighters were still on site shortly before noon, as heavy equipment was brought in to pull down the walls and remove smouldering debris.
There were no injuries in the blaze.
“These metal-clad buildings, they're just like an oven," with sheets of tin keeping in the heat, said Fire Chief Kevin Gallant.
As the sheets were pulled down, flames were visible.
Gallant was waiting for an official from the Ontario Fire Marshal's (OFM) office to begin an investigation. He declined to comment on a potential cause for the blaze, or the contents of the building.
Although the fire chief declined to discuss the contents of the barn, the smouldering remains of what appeared to be a boat and a vehicle could be seen.
"We are currently awaiting an investigator from the OFM," Chief Gallant said, noting fire crews still on site would be "going through to put out hot spots."
The Office of the Ontario Fire Marshal is called in when damage and losses are extensive. The building, which was reduced to blackened rubble, is owned by John and Casey Bak.
In addition to BWG Fire and Emergency equipment, Gallant called on mutual aid — a second aerial ladder truck from the Innisfil Fire and Rescue Service, and a pump 20 from the New Tecumseth Fire Rescue — to cover the Bradford station.
The New Tec crew also responded to a motor vehicle collision on Barrie Street near Scanlon Avenue in BWG after a vehicle ran into a home.
Firefighters were able to prevent the blaze from taking hold of an adjacent barn and stack of wooden pallets, but it suffered damage, including partial collapse of the roof.
The Guild of Automotive Restorers, next door to where the fire took place, is located in the former Bak Market building, recognizable for the windmill on the roof — now filled with valuable antique and classic cars.
