Petitcodiac transport company to rebuild after fire destroys head office and garage

A trucking companywill rebuild after fire destroyed the Burgess Transportation Services head office and repair garage in Petitcodiac, about 44 kilometres southwest of Moncton.

Captain Brian Dunfieldof the Petitcodiac Fire Department said the call came in just before 8 p.m. on Tuesday, and the fire was still burning when employees arrived for work Wednesday morning.

Dunfield said the large commercial structure was made of concrete, which made it a difficult fire to fight.

"There's a lot of different materials in the building such as paint, steel, parts, supplies, a little bit of oil. So it's been very challenging to get it fully extinguished."

The department confirmed about 100 crew members from 12 fire departments tackled the flames overnight.

Dunfield could not determine the exact cause of the fire but said his firefighters found heavy flames on the floors of the garage bays when they arrived, which could indicate that's where the fire started.

No one was hurt in the fire, he said, and an investigation is being carried out by the Fire Marshal's Office.

WATCH | What's left of a Petitcodiac family business after fire:

Fire destroys Petitcodiac trucking company

2 months ago

Duration 1:30

About 65 employees showed up for work Wednesday morning to find Burgess Transportation on fire.

Trevor Burgess, co-owner of Burgess Transportation Services, said the business closed at about 7 p.m. on Tuesday.

A custodian saw smoke rising from the roof and immediately called 911.

"An hour later everything was all ablaze," he said.

Burgess described getting the phone call from his custodian as "gut-wrenching" and estimated the loss to be at least $2 million.

"It's obviously devastating," he said."But we like to tell our customers that we're going to be up and going as quick as we can."

He said the company employs between 60 and 65 people, and theywill operate out of a temporary location until Burgess can rebuild,possibly as soon asnext year.

Other businesses have already offered garage space for the company to use until then.

"As far as our drivers and trucks, we'll keep rolling that type of thing, so I can't anticipate any layoffs at all.

"We'll try to keep everybody rolling."

Small community bands together

Peter Saunders, a firefighter and mayor of Three Rivers, which includes Petitcodiac, called it the biggest fire he has seen in his career.

Saunders said itis "a big hit" for the small community, and calls came in all night from people offering to help.

"Last night I had a call from some ladies in the village who had their local grocery store opened up, and they opened up our legion and they made sandwiches, coffee for the whole crew all night long. I mean, that's what small communities are all about right there."

Burgess said the company's employees are all "like family."

"Everyone here showed up for work this morning ready to puton theirgloves and pitch in and help out."