Fire At A Bowser Gas Station Shuts Down Stretch Of Highway 19  

A big fire at a Bowser gas station shut down a stretch of Highway 19 last night.

Fire crews raced out to the scene around 1030pm last night, with flames and plumes of thick, black smoke rising to the sky.

According to Bow Horn Bay fire Chief Clayton Bucoviz, the first 911 calls started coming in at 9:56 p.m.

"Initial reports came in that we had flames about 30 metres in the air," Bucoviz says. "I would put it higher than that. My guess is probably closer to 40 metres in the air, full flames, sparks."

Reportedly, the fire started inside a vehicle that was parked in one of the gas station's service bays and flames quickly spread throughout the building, threatening nearby homes.

"This is probably the biggest fire that I've had in this area but suppression efforts were fantastic by all five departments," Bucoviz says. "Everyone worked terrifically in conjunction with each other."

There was no word on injuries. The section of highway, between Midland and Crosley Roads, was closed until about 4am this morning.