THUNDER BAY, Ont. — An early morning fire last year tore through a Thunder Bay, Ont. truck dealer, destroying the service department.

On Feb. 21, Thunder Bay Truck Centre marked the one-year anniversary of the occasion with the grand re-opening of an expanded 21,000 sq ft facility.

The fire mostly affected the service department, leaving the showroom and offices weren’t scorched, but blackened from the smoke.

All the walls, furniture and contents, had to be cleaned, and while the office area was usable, the Peterbilt dealer was left without any means to service its customer base. Its contingency plan was to look for something temporary offsite.

"A shop came available five days after the fire," general manager Dave Mack tells todaystucking.com. “It was on our street and within view of our main office, just less then half a block away.”

The temporary shop had three bays and some office and warehouse space. All the mechanics, useable tools and some inventory moved down the street, and a wireless phone system was routed through the main office to keep the shop connected.

The Thunder bay dealer is taking advantage of his brand new
digs by expanding fshow floor and garage space.

Within seven days of the fire the shop was up and running, and service work continued, adds Mack.

Exactly one year after the fire, Thunder Bay Truck Centre re-opened its new and improved location. And since the dealer was getting new digs, management decided to take the opportunity to expand their operations.

The facility now has an additional 1,800 sq ft of shop floor, 1,900 sq ft of warehouse and storage, 920 sq ft of office space, and a 330 sq ft customer lounge and shower area.

To date, the cost of the building, contents, and extra expenses is in the neighborhood of $4 million.

Thunder Bay Truck Centre’s management and staff took a terrible tragedy and turned it into an opportunity to position themselves as a major truck seller in Northwest Ontario.

The Peterbilt dealer has been serving the area since 1977 and also operates as a Manac trailer www.manac.ca/ dealer. As well as the Thunder Bay location, the company operates another full-service dealership in Fort Frances, Ont.