Replacement for Cariboo city landmark goes up in flames in fire that destroyed creator's studio

Awood carvingdestined to overlook the Williams Lake Stampede grounds wasdestroyed in a fire that ripped through the creator's studio last Friday.

The cedar cow boss statue, a replacement for the 15-year-old original that collapseddue to rot, was accidentally set ablaze by the wood stove that carver Ken Sheen uses to burn off sawdust in his studio located off Highway 97 near McLeese Lake.

The highway was reduced to single-lane traffic for two hours as a result of the fire.

The statuewas charred along with Sheen's carving tools and a number of other wood sculptures.

Over the years, Sheen has been hired by Williams Lake to create wood sculptures that are displayed across the city, including the Heart of a Championlocated at the intersection of two local highways.

Sheen's wood works are also displayed in Quesnel and 100 Mile House.

The carver says he was in shock when he discovered firehad spreadfrom his sawdust burner to the entire studio after he left it to go to his house andcheck his computer.

"I could hear [the fire] sounded like gunshots going off," Sheen said Monday to Shelley Joyce, the host of CBC's Daybreak Kamloops. "My dogs were barking outside I finally went out to see what they were barking about and there was a huge flame. It must have been 60 feet or 80 feet tall."

"It was intense and everything was on fire," he said. "It was so intense you couldn't get anywhere near that."

Sheen says he lost not only several months of work carving the cow boss statue but also chainsaws and many other specialized sculpting tools estimated to be worth about $7,000.

"It burnedup thousands and thousands of dollars worth of tools that I've been collecting over 20 years," he said. "Everything is gone."

Williams Lake Coun. Scott Nelson says the entire council feels for Sheen and the losses he's sustained.

"Our hearts are with Ken Sheen and the family," Nelson said. "He's certainly got the entrepreneurial spirit of the Cariboo inside of him."

Sheen says the community helped clean up the mess and is holding a fundraiser to help him get back to work.

"I'm just trying to figure out what to do I'm trying to get my ducks in a row," he said.

Tap the link below to hear Ken Sheen's interview on Daybreak Kamloops: