An explosion rattled the area around the Ferndale Airfield Airport early Sunday morning, after a plane caught fire between a row of hangars west of the airstrip.

Ferndale Fire Department Chief Ken Sharr said the owner was in the plane when it caught fire, but was able to escape uninjured.

The volunteer fire department was dispatched to the fire at 6:45 a.m. and Sharr said his crew quickly extinguished the fire, which did not affect any other structures or property.

The plane, a tail-wheel Citabria, was deemed a total loss. Its owner estimated the damage at about $40,000.

Sharr said the cause of the fire is under investigation. He guessed the sound was the plane’s fuel tank exploding, but said that hadn’t been confirmed as of Monday afternoon.

Reporter Sam Wilson can be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com.