Monday afternoon, putting two businesses out of commission but hurting no one.

The Augusta, Chelsea, Gardiner, Hallowell and Togus Fire Departments responded to the blaze at 674 Riverside Drive that was first reported at 2:26 p.m.

Two employees from the businesses housed in the building -- Mike's Auto Repair and Wilson's Pallet Recycling -- were on site when the fire began. Edward Bishop, the head mechanic at the auto repair business, said he was removing a fuel tank from a vehicle when he lit a torch and "it fireballed."

The car he was repairing remained on the lift inside the garage as the flames enveloped it.

Firefighters brought the blaze under control before 4 p.m. Traffic on Riverside Drive was reduced to one lane near the scene.

Augusta Fire Chief Roger Audette said firefighters had responded on Friday to the report of a fire at the same building involving a wood stove used to burn the wooden pallets. Three years ago, Audette said, firefighters battled another major blaze at the property.

"The building was already in rough shape," he said.

This time, firefighters were unable to salvage the structure. As the flames increased in intensity, passers-by and neighbors gathered across the street to view the damage. "Our concern was to keep people away," Audette said, and "keeping the firefighters out of danger."

According to Audette, the fire collapsed portions of the building's roof, causing firefighters to battle the blaze cautiously. Firefighters hosed down the flames from an Augusta Fire Department ladder truck after battling the blaze from the ground for the first 40 minutes.

"You have to be really careful when the roof collapses," Audette said. "It pushes the walls out."

The business owners, from the same family, said they lost auto-repair equipment and a race car housed in the garage.

The fire also put a hitch in plans Bishop and Clifford Wilson had to move into an apartment inside the building. They agreed on Monday they were lucky they had not yet made the move.

"As long as everybody got out fine," Wilson said, "it's all right."

Renee Wilson, a relative of the business owners, said her family had not yet decided how to proceed on Monday.

"Hopefully, we can rebuild it," she said.

William Pinette, of Augusta, is listed as the property's owner. The building was last assessed at $42,400.