COLRAIN — A two-car garage with a vacant apartment above it at 397 Main Road (Route 112) was destroyed by a two-alarm fire that started Thursday at around 3:15 a.m.

“We are not 100% certain, but we believe the fire started near the wood stove,” Colrain Fire Chief Nick Anzuoni said in a phone interview.

There were no injuries, but the garage is “totally lost,” according to Anzuoni.

The property is owned by John Dawid of Stratford, Connecticut, who let his brother, Shelburne Falls resident Chuck Coates, use it to work on cars. The garage housed a 1967 Chevrolet Camaro owned by Coates that was being restored. The car, a snowmobile and all of Coates’ tools were destroyed in Thursday’s blaze.

Jared Mizula, who lives next door at 395 Main Road, was alerted to the fire by an acquaintance who was headed out to plow snow. Mizula opened the garage door and, using his pickup truck and a tow strap, was able to pull out a Kubota tractor. However, he was unable to save the Camaro as the fire intensified. Mizula, along with neighbor Dan Williams and Jordan Grenier, then used garden hoses to try to quell the fire before firefighters arrived.

Coates was alerted to the fire and arrived at the scene early Thursday morning. As Coates and some of his friends dug through the rubble on Thursday afternoon, all that remained were the foundation walls. According to Anzuoni, the garage was not insured.

Firefighters from Colrain, Shelburne Falls, Shelburne, Heath, Charlemont, Ashfield, Greenfield and Buckland, as well as Halifax and Whitingham in Vermont, all assisted in extinguishing the fire.

“Small-town departments can’t do this without working together,” Anzuoni said. “We need mutual aid and everyone to respond together.”

Bella Levavi can be reached at blevavi@recorder.com or 413-930-4579. Reach Paul Franz at pfranz@recorder.com or 413-930-4128.

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