Firefighters say a massive fire that destroyed approximately 40 collector cars in Langley in October might have been stopped before it wrecked the entire collection.
The fire, which broke out early in the morning of Oct. 25, completely engulfed a private garage in the 7200-block of 216 Street.
Assistant chief Pat Walker with the Township of Langley Fire Department said an investigation by his own team along with private investigators has now determined that the blaze was an electrical fire.
“There was no wrongdoing with respect to the owner or any other outstanding issues with the owner,” Walker said.
“It was accidental in nature and it was one of those circumstances that if the building had a sprinkler system installed, it would’ve probably been a totally different outcome.”
Click below to see images of the cars before they were destroyed by the fire
Walker said it is unfortunate that the owner suffered a total loss, and that some of the vehicles might have been saved if a fire suppression system was in place.
“The fire growth and the amount of fire that was there when we arrived on scene, it had actually gone undetected for a considerable amount of time.”
WATCH: Aerial images of the fire damage
Upon learning of the destruction from Las Vegas last month, heartbroken owner Gary Cassidy told Global News, “I don’t think my wife and I could have been more upset if we had lost a child.”
Cassidy estimated the garage held more than three-dozen vehicles worth an estimated $3 million.
While the cars were insured, several of them were one of a kind, he said.
The majority of the vehicles were GM products, and the collection included rare finds like a ’61 Chevy Bel-Air Convertible and a ’68 Camaro.