A weekend fire left occupants of a strip mall uncertain about their future.

"There was no roof, there was no building. All that was standing was the structure," said Tracey Verishine manager of Klass A Auction.

Tracey said that they had set up all of the merchandise and taken pictures for an upcoming auction only hours before the fire.

"We are in shock ... the next thing I knew I got a phone call ... telling me that I should come down because we had a fire," she said.

"When I first thought about it I thought 'oh we are going to have some cleanup to do.' I didn't realize the intensity of it until I actually came close by."

She said that while the investigation continues they are unable to see the full extent of the damage but the effects are already being felt.

"I have to get this and I have to call these people and I realize my phone book was in the office, okay that's gone. I need to grab the book for bookings, that book is gone, it's in the office," she said.

They are looking for a temporary location and will continue auctions until the building is rebuilt, but Verishine said it won't be the same.

"I can replace items, it is going to take a little while but it is just very sad, it is hard. It wasn't just a place of business for us," she said.

Lorne Bokshowan was at the lake when he found out that the building he owned was up in flames.

"We had no idea the extent of the damage until we googled ... I was shocked," he said.

The building had been built by Bokshowan's father in the early 1980s and had been home to their own business for over a decade.

"It was home to us ... we plan to rebuild," he said.

The site was also home to the Saskatoon and District Female Hockey's office. Commissioner Karin Heaney said that they stored all of their jerseys and equipment in the basement.

"I know there is no ceiling in the place above us. Obviously there is going to be a lot of water because everything that went in went straight down to the basement," she said.

She has not been able to enter and see how much damage there is but said that they are lucky they recently did inventory.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

kmalone@rawlco.com