John Wilson says he lost his life's work when his shop full of restored vintage vehicles and other items went up in flames early Friday morning in Pense, Sask.

"I got no goddamn insurance and I lost over a million dollars today," said a distraught Wilson. "Everything I owned was in that building."

Pence deputy fire chief Ken Lovell said they received a 911 call around 4 a.m. CST Friday from residents in a home.

The family escaped unhurt, but the house was already engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived.

"The fire was up in the roof," said Lovell.

I’m on the scene of a multi-building fire in Pense. A resident tells me these were houses. <a href="https://twitter.com/CBCSask?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CBCSask</a> <a href="https://t.co/cnH6QnclrS">pic.twitter.com/cnH6QnclrS</a> —@emilypasiuk

The fire then spread to Wilson's nearby shop, the Outlaw Garage.

At that point nearby fire departments in Rouleau and Grand Coulee were called in to back up the Pense volunteer firefighters.

Wilson said he got a call saying his shop was on fire sometime between 5:30 and 6 a.m.

He's angry he wasn't called sooner. He feels he might have been able to save some of the vehicles.

Wilson said the corner of the building was on fire when he got there and fire officials wouldn't let him go into the shop.

"Nobody bothered telling me [right away] so everything got f---ing burnt," Wilson said.

"I had antique vehicles in there that were mint and they are all gone. I had my motor home in there, my brand new snowmobile."

Firefighters work to extinguish a fire in Pense, Sask., Friday. (Emily Pasiuk/CBC)

His daughter Macy Wilson drove all the way from Swift Current after she received a phone call from him.

"I come here and everything we own is up in flames," said Macy, who is an auto body technician and had some of her cars stored in the shop.

She said some of the vehicles included her restored 1962 Ford Falcon, a 1966 Chrysler Windsor, 1970 Chrysler Newport and her 2003 VW Beetle.

John's dream car, a custom 2009 Dodge Challenger RT, was in there as well.

"I feel so numb," Macy said. "I was bawling the whole drive down, I couldn't see.

"I'm probably going to have a complete meltdown later on."

John Wilson's shop was completely destroyed in the blaze. (Emily Pasiuk/CBC)

John said he also lost model trains and diecast model kits, family memorabilia and television equipment he had for making a car show.

"I had done a show called Lugnuts ...and I was going to put it on Youtube, but it all burned with the building."

Lovell said they don't have an estimate of damage and the investigation is ongoing.

Pense is located about 30 kilometres west of Regina.