What first appeared to be a spectacular blaze at a Coquitlam paint store turned out to be nothing more than roofing material on fire.

Coquitlam firefighters were called to the Dulux Paints store on Barnet Highway near Lansdowne Drive around 6: 30 p.m. Monday.

Flames could be seen shooting from the roof of the business complex, which also houses a spa and Curves.

"It was very spectacular coming down the road," said assistant fire chief Scott MacKenzie, who figured he had a five-alarm blaze on his hands.

But when crews arrived, they were able to quickly knock down the fire.

It ended up just being roofing materials and tar on the roof of the complex, which somehow caught fire.

"It looked like a five [alarm] gone to a half [alarm]," MacKenzie said.

He noted there was no fire damage to any of the businesses or the building, and only about $1,000 of material went up in smoke.

It was also fortunate no one was hurt in the incident, as the building was empty since it was after business hours.

Fire investigators are not sure what started the blaze.

Justin Gagnon had only been the paint store's manager for a week.

He got a call from a regional boss alerting him the building was on fire.

Though Gagnon was nervous at the news, he was relieved by the eventual outcome.

The fire department told him there was no fire damage to the building or store, just a bit of water damage instead.

"Things are looking OK," Gagnon told The NOW at the scene of the fire.

However, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to open the store the next day.

The store manager said all of his employees had packed up for the day before the fire was called in.

Gagnon noted a roofer had been doing work that day on the complex prior to the fire.

jdeutsch@thenownews.com