A woodworking shop in Summit Hill became a mass of flames Tuesday morning when fire erupted while the owner was doing work inside.

The fire happened at the shop, a former barn, along the 100 block of East White Bear Drive, next to the Carbon County Environmental Education Center.The center did not appear to have damage from the fire, although the burning building is only about 25 yards from it.As indication of the intensity of the flames, Summit Hill Chief of Police Joseph Fittos Jr. parked his cruiser on East White Bear Drive, over 125 feet from the burning structure. Still, he said he could feel some heat from the fire.The two-story, wooden building is owned by Mark Olving, who lives next door to the structure and who said he purchased it in 2013.The previous owner also had used it as a woodworking shop. At one time, it had been used as a bakery.Fittos said the building was engulfed in flames when he reached the scene.Summit Hill firefighter Ron Yuricheck was among the first responders to reach the scene. He said flames were shooting 50 feet into the air.At one point, a garage near the building which is also owned by Olving began smoking. He immediately started moving his vehicles from the structure, but firefighters managed to knock down the flames before they could spread to any other buildings.Olving said he went to work about 7:30 to get started on some projects. He said he heard a noise, turned and saw sparks. The fire quickly spread before Olving could respond.He managed to escape unharmed, but all his wood and equipment inside the structure were lost.Responding were firefighters from Summit Hill, Lansford, Coaldale, Tamaqua, Mahoning Township and Jim Thorpe. Water was hauled to the scene in tankers from the nearby boat launch area of Mauch Chunk Lake.Fittos had praise for the firefighters for their quick knockdown of the fire.Still, because of the intensity of the fire, nothing from the woodworking shop could be salvaged.