Larry Abaire, owner of Genesee Auto, was working on taking parts off a car in his rented garage space on Pratt road in East Pembroke when gas leaking from a gas tank sparked a fire.
Abaire’s friend who was inside the garage with him called 9-1-1 while Abaire attempted to put the fire out with an extinguisher.
The fire quickly spread and Abaire and his friend had to vacate the building.
“We tried to save what we could,” says Don Newton East Pembroke Fire Chief. “Wasn’t much to be saved, the fire was blowing out the front door when we got on scene.”
Abaire says he lost $200,000 worth of tools in the fire along with some junk cars.
No one was injured in the fire, the building and the back garage are a total loss.
Six fire companies were called to the scene about 11:15a.m. to help put out the blaze.
A tool or light that was used may have sparked the the fire.
Abaire says he has been renting at the garage for 5 years and not all his equipment was at this location.