A fire at Ginn Chevrolet Thursday night caused around $100,000 worth of damage to the dealership's parts and service departments, according to the owner.

Covington Deputy Fire Chief David Carter said the fire started in a rear office in the building at 8:53 p.m. and spread to the parts storage area. It took firefighters a few hours to put out the fire, which was kept in check by the building's sprinkler system. There was also smoke damage to the service area, Carter said.

The cause of the fire is still being investigated, Carter said.

The service department was closed Friday as the area was cleaned, and Ginn Owner Billy Fortson said he hoped to have it back open Saturday. The parts counter area, cashier area and service manager's office will have to be totally renovated Fortson said Friday. He said he received an estimate of $65,000 to repair the building, with an additional $30,000 to $55,000 worth of damage to computers, tools and other equipment.

A few cars were located in the service department at the time and sustained smoke damage, but Fortson said they would be able to be cleaned out.

"The fire department did a wonderful job, and the fact I have a sprinkler system kept the fire at a minimum," Fortson said. "When I got there a little after 9 p.m., it was very hot and the smoke was terribly dense."