A Western Queensland community has been left reeling after its only supermarket burnt down overnight.
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Thargomindah's Foodworks was destroyed by a fire, meaning residents now face a potential three-to-four-hour round trip to the next closest supermarket.
Emergency services were called to the scene on Dowling Street about 3.30am on Thursday to find the building ablaze.
Rural Fire Service volunteers were the first on the scene and were soon backed up by crews from nearby towns like Cunnamulla and Quilpie.
Despite the best efforts of volunteer firefighters and locals who rushed to the scene to help out, the fire had already taken hold and the building was destroyed.
Investigators are now looking into the cause of the fire and locals are rallying behind the store's owners, Phil and Donna Humphris, who until recently, also owned the local motel.
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Thargomindah local and Bulloo Shire councillor Glyn Dare said the community would rally behind the Humphris family.
"There's no doubt everyone will hook in and do what they can to support Phil and Donna," Mr Dare said.
"When everyone knew there was trouble last night, they came from everywhere to lend a hand and try to put the fire out.
"Unfortunately it couldn't be saved and it is still smouldering now, which is really sad.
"It is a bit of a kick in the guts but it is just one of those things."
Better known to locals as Dogga, Mr Dare owns the Explorers Caravan Park in Thargomindah and is Donna Humphris' brother.
Mr Dare said he was confident it wouldn't take long for the family to get back on its feet.
"With any luck, it might only be a few weeks that the town is without a supermarket," he said.
"Phil and Donna are both really hard workers and are really switched on, so I wouldn't be surprised if they have already started trying to put a plan together.
"It is a huge loss for the town because the next closest supermarket would probably be Eulo, which is about an hour and a half away, or Cunnamulla or Quilpie which are more than two hours away.
"Hopefully we can get something happening sooner rather than later."
The blaze comes as the town reopened after being cut off by flood waters for nearly two weeks.
Warrego MP Ann Leahy said she was devastated to hear the supermarket had been lost in the fire.
"It's really sad because Phil and Donna run a really good operation and the supermarket provides such a great service to the community," Ms Leahy said.
"Personally, I stop in every time I come through Thargomindah because the supermarket has just about everything you could need.
"Phil and Donna are really great business people and I'm confident, with the help of the community, will be back up and running before too long."
Billy Jupp
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
