A 50-year-old grocery store was destroyed by a fire on Monday evening. The fire occurred after hours, and no injuries were reported.

Hunter’s Shop ’n Save, a family-owned independent grocery store, was reduced to cinders by a fire that was reported at 9:12 p.m. on Monday, according to Wolfeboro Deputy Fire Chief Nathan Nichols. He said 10 departments worked together to extinguish the fire, with some coming from as far as Rochester.

“The building is a total loss,” Nichols said. “It is a pile of rubble right now.”

The state Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating.

A steady wind gave the fire a constant supply of oxygen, and gave firefighters a challenge, Nichols said. The crews made use of nearby Lake Winnipesaukee as a water source, something he called “drafting.”

“We overwhelmed the hydrant system for a short time,” Nichols said. “But we were able to overcome that by setting up three different draft sites once we had those up and running in conjunction with the hydrant system.”

Nichols estimated that the fire was extinguished around 4:30 a.m.

“This is the largest in-town fire we’ve had in quite a few years,” Nichols added.

A GoFundMe campaign was established by Tuesday morning to support the store’s workers. By late afternoon, it had raised nearly $15,000. One donor wrote, “Hunter’s was our go to grocery store for decades. We are hoping the owners will be able to rebuild and you all will find gainful employment in the meantime. Love you all to pieces.”

To learn more, visit gofund.me/c2440c3d.

At 9:30 on Tuesday morning, about 12 hours after the fire broke out, a small crowd of employees were standing in the supermarket’s parking lot, comforting each other and trying to make sense of the scene.

“It’s devastating, it’s surreal,” said Doreen Scaramello, who has worked as a cashier for the grocery store for the past five years, and also worked there for a stretch during the 1990s.

She said Hunter’s is a “staple” in the community, a place where shoppers could find food and their neighbors. “It’s a community store, everybody knew everybody.”

Luanne Bergeron, grocery manager, has worked at the store for 40 years. She said she valued the convenience of the store’s location, the flexibility of the work schedule, and the bonds between coworkers.

“We’re a family, a big family,” Bergeron said. “It’s a close-knit community.”

Store manager Perry Shaw said the building was constructed in either 1969 or 1971, and that it employed around 50 people. Many of those workers showed up during the night to watch as firefighters worked to contain the blaze. One firefighter pulled down the store’s American flag to protect it from the flames, then ran it back up the flagpole once it was safe to do so.

Shaw said he got a call at around 9:15 p.m. on Monday night, and he came down to the store immediately.

He said he was focusing on the fact that the loss was purely material.

“We’re all healthy, no one got hurt. We’ll come back better than ever, as quick as we can,” Shaw said on Tuesday morning.

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