A Dawsonville man has been charged with first-degree arson in connection with a fire at a local tire shop in 2012.

Joshua Stapler, 27, is accused of pouring a flammable substance on the floor and igniting a fire at the shop on Blue Ridge Overlook and Hwy. 53, according to the arrest warrant.

A motorist reported the fire about 4:30 a.m. on Dec. 27, 2012.

Emergency personnel were greeted by heavy smoke when they arrived at the blaze, which took nearly three hours to put out and shut down Hwy. 53 for several hours.

No one was injured in the incident and no nearby businesses were damaged.

"The fire totally destroyed the building and the vehicles around it," said Dawson County Sheriff's spokesman Tony Wooten.

Stapler is being held without bond.