The owners of the Skye Motel had plans to upgrade the building that was destroyed by a fire early Saturday morning, according to neighbours.

Now all that's left of the motel, just south of Brock Township, built in 1964, is a blackened shell of a building and a sign reminding passersby what was once there.

The motel, on the west side of Hwy. 7/12, was consumed by flames early Saturday, March 22, at about 2:30 a.m. and firefighters from three municipalities, including Brock, worked to put it out.

Flames could be seen from as far as 10 kilometres away.

Fire officials said four of the motel's units, in addition to the owner's home, were occupied at the time of the fire. Neighbours of the motel said the owners, a family of five including three children, are staying with relatives. The family could not be reached for comment.

Mark Donneral, manager of Petro Gold gas bar next door to the motel, said the current owners took over the motel a year ago.

"He's been working (on the motel)," noted Mr. Donneral of the motel owner. "(He was) planning on re-roofing... (he was) getting things coming around."

Mr. Donneral said when he first heard about the fire he feared it started in the gas bar.

"The highway was closed down... they sanded the road, there were water trucks (going) up and down (the highway)," he explained.

Next to Petro Gold is the Roadside Country Diner. Co-owner Marlene Rhodes said the fire was "a little scary... it's a good thing they got it under control," although she mentioned the fire knocked out the restaurant's phone line for a day. By the time she arrived to the restaurant at 7 a.m., the fire was under control.

According to Scugog fire officials, a representative with the Ontario Fire Marshal's office surveyed the scene on Saturday.

"The investigation is ongoing," said Rob Gonnermann, the Scugog Fire Department's deputy chief. He did not provide any further details.

He added that the Scugog department got the first call around 2:10 a.m. Upon arriving at the scene, firefighters were greeted with a spectacular blaze that officials believe began in the centre of the building where the owners lived.

It took firefighters four hours "to get it to the point where we had it under control," added Deputy Chief Gonnermann.

The majority of the firefighters left the scene around 11 a.m. later that morning, with a "skeleton crew" remaining on site to assist the fire marshal official and to check for hotspots, said the deputy chief.

Deputy Chief Gonnermann estimated damage somewhere between $600,000 and $750,000.