A blaze that broke out Sunday night in Whiskey Creek resulted in "hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses," according to Aaron Poirier, Coombs-Hilliers Volunteer Fire Department fire chief.
Poirier said flames engulfed a two-storey commercial "multi-use building" along Chatsworth Road that housed a variety of businesses, from a motor repair shop to a furniture store to a licenced medical marijuana growing facility.
He said nobody was injured in the fire and the source is undetermined.
Poirier said — due to damages — it will be difficult to figure out where and why the fire started.
Oceanside RCMP Cpl. Jesse Foreman confirmed foul play is not suspected and there is no criminal investigation into the source of the fire.
"I believe the building wasn't insured but there may have been tenants with insurance," Poirier told The NEWS Tuesday morning.
He said this serves as a good reminder to ensure your insurance is up to date.
"It's sad to see the amount of dollar loss," said Poirier. "It'll be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars for sure."
It took firefighters about three hours to put out the flames. Poirier said challenges included water supply given the rural location of the fire, access to the building and "crowd control."
More than 50 firefighters from seven departments responded to the call including Coombs-Hilliers, Dashwood, Bow Horn Bay, Qualicum Beach, Errington, Parksville and Nanoose Bay Volunteer Fire Departments.
Poirier said he is grateful for all the support of neighbouring fire departments, the RCMP, B.C. Ambulance Service and BC Hydro.