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A massive fire in Langley has destroyed a garage with about 40 collector cars inside.

Crews were called to the house and garage in the 7200-block of 216 Street around 3:30 a.m. Wednesday.

“It was fully alarmed, flames were through the roof when we arrived on scene and we weren’t able to put anybody inside, so we took a defensive posture with the fire,” said Langley deputy fire chief Bruce Ferguson.

Horrible shots for any car lover. This is what is left after a massive fire in #Langley Looks like a car collection. @GlobalBC more at Noon. pic.twitter.com/g1BuVgAkbL — Ted Field (@tedfieldglobal) October 25, 2017

The house is occupied but no one was home at the time.

The properties are owned Garry Cassidy, who was away in Las Vegas at the time of the incident.

WATCH: Aerial images of the fire damage

1:02 Langley garage fire: aerials Langley garage fire: aerials

The 40 collector cars consisted of mostly GM products, with prized possessions like a ’61 Chevy Bel-Air Convertible, a ’68 Camaro, and six Corvettes among the collection.

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“I’ve always been a big car guy,” says Cassidy, “but I don’t think my wife and I could have been more upset if we had lost a child.

“Its not about the money; a couple of those cars cannot be replaced. Write me a check for whatever, you can’t replace the cars.”

Click below to see images of the cars before they were destroyed by the fire

Some of the rare vehicles destroyed in the fire. Alyn Edwards Some of the rare vehicles destroyed in the fire. Alyn Edwards Some of the rare vehicles destroyed in the fire. Alyn Edwards

Cassidy says they purchased the shop to keep all the cars under one roof. People would contact them to come see their car collection.

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“The more we bought, the more we wanted to buy,” Cassidy says about his and his wife’s hobby. “They’re like our children.”

Cassidy is on his way home from Las Vegas to attend to the damages.

It is estimated that the total collection is worth about $3 million.

There is no word on the cause of the fire or if it is considered suspicious.