A fire early Tuesday morning that was 'deliberately set' at Faro's only gas station has left the community of 400 residents without anywhere to fill up.

Reported at around 5:30 a.m., the blaze was extinguished by 7 a.m. but not before extensive damage was done to the building.

Mayor Michelle Vainio said there is some urgency to determine what North of 60 plans to do about the loss of service ability at its Shell station, so the town can determine what direction to proceed in.

The town administration has already sent an e-mail to another fuel distributor in the Yukon to apprise the company of the situation, she said.

The mayor said not only is a fuel supply necessary to maintain the integrity of the community's emergency services, such as ambulance and fire, but is of the utmost importance just for everyday life.

There are, for instance, a fair number of Faroites who work at the abandoned lead-zinc mine who need to travel the 30 kilometres there everyday and then back again, she pointed out.

'That is a long trek,' she said, emphasizing the importance of a regular gasoline supply in town.

'One of the councillors said, I have to go to Whitehorse tomorrow, but how am I going to get there? I don't have enough fuel to get to Carmacks because I was going to fill up on my way out of town.'

'One of the other councillors said, Don't worry, I have some fuel for you,'' Vainio recalled of the conversation at last night's meeting of town council.

'So we need some answers very, very quickly.'

There has been general disagreement with the notion of hauling in fuel in jerri cans or larger 45-gallon drums because of liability, she said.

The mayor did note that if somebody's in a pinch, Ross River is only 45 or 50 minutes away, but that drive in itself burns up a fair amount of fuel.

'If North of 60 or somebody does not step up to do something, we will have to.'

Meanwhile, the town has broadcast public service announcements in Whitehorse and the other communities to alert motorists of the situation should they be planning a trip to Faro, a popular spot during the fall hunting season, Vainio pointed out.

Territorial fire marshal Marty Dobbin said this morning he has determined the fire was deliberately started, after completing his on-scene investigation Tuesday afternoon and ruling out accidental ignition.

He said it was not faulty electrical wiring, nor problems with the furnace, smoking materials, or anything else that could have accidentally started the fire.

'The fire scene investigation is complete . . . and the RCMP is continuing its investigation.'

The Faro RCMP detachment sent out a press release Tuesday asking members of the public to provide any assistance or information they might have regarding the investigation.

The fire marshal credited Faro's volunteer fire department with preventing what could have been a much hotter blaze.

Firefighters, Dobbin said, contained the intensity of the fire to the front office area, preventing it from spreading into the garage bays and to a storage area of tires that would have provided a volatile fuel load.

Damage to the building, however, is extensive, he said.

'I would say the office portion of the gas station was gutted by fire,' Dobbin said. 'The repair bays in the garage are heavily smoke-damaged and the roof section to the whole building has been heavily affected by fire.

'I would require extensive repairs if they are going to utilize that building,' he said, though adding it's difficult at this point to place a value on the damage.

Sharon Ness, general manager of North 60 Petro Ltd. in the Yukon, said this morning it's too early to make any comments as the company is still assessing the situation.

The mayor said while the Shell station was heavily damaged by fire, heat and billowing smoke, it is fortunate the fire was not more intense with propane exploding, or tires burning, or a threat to underground gas tanks themselves.

Had two highway workers not been heading out shortly after 5 a.m. to the Drury Creek highway camp, the outcome might have been entirely different, the mayor said.

In a small town, she pointed out, there isn't a lot of activity on the streets at that time of the morning.

As it was, Vainio explained, the highway workers immediately contacted the RCMP and went to Vainio's home and banged loudly on the door, as her husband, Mark, is the deputy fire chief.

A crew of five volunteer firefighters outfitted with Scott airpacks fought the blaze directly while a couple of more volunteers helped outside pulling hose and such, she recalled. She was at the scene assessing the severity of the situation.

The Faro volunteer fire department may not be large in numbers, but the firefighters are 'very qualified and dedicated.

'And the building is still standing,' she said, adding once the blaze was declared out at around 7 a.m., she offered the firefighting crew breakfast on the town.

'These are firefighters fighting fire,' said Vainio, emphasizing their importance to a community. 'To buy them breakfast, that is the least you can do.'

The mayor said town administration has sent a letter to North 60 asking the company to let Faro know what it intends to do no later than Sept. 14.

Council has also directed administration to contact North 60's head office in Alaska to see what it is contemplating, she said.

Vainio said officials with the Yukon's Department of Community Services and the Emergency Measures Organization have been in contact with the town office, and are staying apprised of developments.