Fire caused significant damage to two eastern Ontario businesses Friday morning.

A 16,000 square foot warehouse was destroyed at Rideau Auctions Inc. in Winchester , about 50 kilometres southeast of Ottawa.

OPP said they noticed black smoke over the property before 7 a.m. Friday morning, with about 50 volunteer firefighters arriving after 7 a.m.

The fire was extinguished, but not before about $500,000 damage was caused to the contents of the building, according to OPP. That total does not include heavy damage to the building itself.

"You're not really planning on this happening to you," said co-owner Theresa McCaig, who had owned the building for the last 20 years. "(We're) pretty devastated."

The contents were apparently being readied for a liquidation sale later Friday afternoon and included tools, appliances and furniture.

Cars on the lot behind the property were damaged by smoke but did not catch fire. There was nobody inside the warehouse at the time and no injuries while fighting the fire, according to police.

The fire in the tin and wood building was still smoking around 11 a.m. Friday, and fire crews were checking for hot spots.

With a population of 3,000, Winchester's mayor said the auction house is very important.

"Rideau Auctions is a great business to have here . . . from a tourist perspective," said Winchester's mayor Eric Duncan. "There's people that come from all over eastern Ontario for the auctions, for the liquedation sales, it's going to be very devastating for the local economy."

The auction company said it will stay open Friday so patrons can check on their goods in the lot.

"It's a big loss for Winchester, but we'll pull our socks back up and build another building," McCaig said.

About an hour after that fire started, another business was reported on fire in Westboro.

The owner of Whisper's Pub and Eatery called Ottawa fire around 8:20 a.m. to report light smoke inside the building, according to Marc Messier with Ottawa Fire Services.

Messier said the fire, believed to be electrical, started in the wall and ceiling area. Flames were seen on the roof when fire crews arrived.

Fire damage was limited to the roof and outside wall, but crews had to open up the walls and ceiling to check for more fire, according to Messier.

There was water damage reported, along with light smoke damage in the dining area.

There were no injuries and damage is estimated at around $60,000 to the building and contents.

With a report from CTV Ottawa's Ellen Mauro