Joanne Leclair Perry had her heart broken on Sunday.
The former owner of Eugene's General Store said it felt like grieving a family member when she learned the Tignish institution caught on fire.
"It's dumbfounding. It's almost like my eyes can't believe what I'm seeing," she said.
Tignish Fire Department, along with Alberton and Miminegash departments, attended the scene of a blaze at Eugene's General store around mid-day.
West Prince RCMP said they responded to the call around noon.
Officials battled the blaze for about three hours before was under control.
"A concern about the fire is that it's located right next to the Irving Gas station," said Leclair-Perry.
Tignish Fire Chief Allan Gavin said the cause of the blaze was unknown. It was believed to have started in the attic area of the building, where one person was located at the time. They were able to evacuate the building safely.
At the time of the fire, the store was open for business, and Gavin said he is unsure how many individuals could have been inside at the time.
The structure dates back to the 1930s when a Bernard family opened a convenience store and tinsmith shop there in 1939.
Then in 1948, Eugene and Anne Marie Perry took over the operation of the store – renting the building for three years before purchasing the property. They lived above the store, raising their nine children there.
They sold the building in 1976, where it was owned by two different owners in a 10-year span. In 1986, Tommy Perry and his wife, Joanne Leclair-Perry took ownership of the store. They sold the business in 2018 to Carter Morrissey.
Leclair-Perry said learning about the fire was not easy.
"I really feel for Carter right now. Tommy and I owned the business for 32 years. When we first started with it there were only three staff. When we sold it there were 20."
The 70-plus-year-old business has become the "heart of the community" and a popular go-to spot, said Leclair-Perry.
"There's been a lot of memories made there."
She said her husband and daughter were up the street at the scene.
"I haven't had the courage to go out there."
Leclair-Perry said she doesn't think the building will be salvageable, but said she didn't know the full extent of the situation.
It was when she got a text reading, "Joanne, the store is on fire," from a former employee, she started to realize what was going on.
"I just feel like I lost a family member - it's almost like grieving."
Amy Nelligan, an employee at Eugene's for two years, was the one to call 911.
"I just told everyone to get out. Me, one other worker, and the boss was in the back. Then a couple came in when I was heading outside to see what was going on."
She said it was the couple who told her to dial 911.
"When I went around the corner, I saw the staircase was on fire. I called right away and got everyone out. We also told the people at the [neighbouring] coffee shop to get out too, just in case."
Nelligan said she was sad about the fire.
"It's my workplace, but also because the owners have always been so good to me."
West Prince RCMP say the fire is now under investigation by the Fire Marshall's office.
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