Manitoba entertainer Al Simmons and his wife Barb are working around the clock to recreate props and costumes collected over decades of work in show business following a fire that tore through two storage trailers.

The structures contained irreplaceable items on the couple's Anola property about 45 minutes east of Winnipeg.

RM of Springfield Fire Department Chief Jeff Hudson said crews received the call shortly after 7:15 p.m. Friday February 9.

Hudson said when fire fighters arrived on scene the fire was well involved. The cause is undetermined but appears to be electrical in nature, he said.

More than a week later, Simmons is still struggling to come to terms with the fire and the loss of the items inside. The night of the fire he said ran inside the burning structures to salvage a few items, but most of them are 'just gone'.

"When I think about what's gone, it destroys me," said Simmons.

The Juno Award winner and Order of Manitoba recipient said many of the burnt items can’t be bought because they were hand-made.

He said he can’t remember how to make many of the props and costumes without referencing the original items. Others include special items that had been passed down from his father who taught him vaudeville and date back to the 1800s. Many instruments were also charred beyond repair.

Simmons is vowing to continue his work and his shows. He said he has several performances booked around Canada in the next year, and his next major performance is with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra in April. This spring will be the start of his 49th year in front of audiences, he said.

“My purpose is to make people laugh. This is not my purpose to make people feel sad for me. This feels so wrong,” Simmons said.

The couple said insurance will cover the loss of the structures and some of the contents.

Friends fundraising

Colleague, musician and long-time friend Heather Bishop is fundraising for Simmons.

She said he spent the last week trying to convince him to let friends help.

“It makes us happy to help you because you make us happy,” she said in a phone call with CTV News Sunday.

“It’s a lifetime of creative genius that went up in smoke ... It's a tragedy,” said Bishop.

“They are inventions that only Al could make up and make you double over in laughter,” said Bishop.

“His bathtub act, his human jukebox, so many things that are irreplaceable”.

“What many Manitobans don't realize is that he's known internationally. He’s a great ambassador for the province and the country,” she said.

“It doesn't matter if you’re a kid or you're an adult it takes a real talent to bridge that gap.”