ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. — An early morning fire caused heavy damage to a QVC distribution center in Rocky Mount, about 60 miles east of Raleigh, officials said Saturday.

The television home shopping network is a major employer in the area, Edgecombe County Manager Eric Evans said Saturday afternoon at a news conference.

“This is a blow to our local economy,” Evans said.

No injuries or deaths have been reported, officials said.

One worker was unaccounted for late Saturday afternoon after his family said they could not contact him.

About 300 employees were at work just after 2 a.m. Saturday when the fire was reported, Evans said, adding that QVC has said that all workers were able to make it out of the building safely.

About 75% of the 1.2 million-square-foot center was damaged by the blaze, Rocky Mount Fire Chief Corey Mercer said at the news conference.

There was no indication Saturday of the cause of the fire, to which 45 agencies across six counties responded, including the N.C. Department of Transportation and N.C. Forest Service.

District Forester Chad Brandon told the news conference that a Forest Service helicopter helped fight the fire by dropping 11,000 gallons of water and doing aerial surveillance.

Firefighters were still working the scene Saturday afternoon.

An investigation involving Edgecombe County authorities, the North Carolina state fire marshal, State Bureau of Investigation, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives would not able to start until at least Monday, Mercer said.

QVC, which has had a presence in the county for more than 20 years, said via social media Saturday afternoon that it was focused on employees and would provide information later about how shipping and delivery might be affected.

The Rocky Mount Chamber of Commerce said 2,500 families would be affected by the fire.

Rocky Mount and Edgecombe officials said Saturday they are coordinating resources to help the employees.