TUPPER LAKE — Quick action in the dead of night by Tupper Lake volunteer firefighters and several neighboring departments who responded on mutual aid put out what could have been a much worse structure fire early Monday morning, likely saving a restaurant and a neighboring apartment from total loss.

The Tupper Lake Volunteer Fire Department responded to 10 Cliff Avenue at 3:34 a.m. Monday for a reported structure fire in a stairwell to a second story apartment unit, which had begun extending into the apartment itself when crews arrived. TLVFD Chief Royce Cole said a bed mattress had caught on fire and one of the occupants tried getting it outside of the building, but it became engulfed in flames too quickly, forcing the person to leave it.

Cole said there were two occupants in the unit and both were able to self-evacuate. One was treated for minor injuries at the scene. No medical transportation was needed. Cole said that through confirmation with the occupants, the cause of the fire was determined to be a candle whose flame spread to the mattress. Foul play is not suspected.

The first interior crews were met with a heavy fire load, but were able to extinguish it pretty quickly, according to Cole. An extensive overhaul process followed, with firefighters knocking down some proximate walls to make sure that the fire was fully out, and that it hadn’t spread. That took about three hours, Cole estimated.

Though there was some water and smoke damage to another apartment unit and the first-story Amado restaurant, Cole said that overall, the building was “very salvageable.” However if it took the responders just a bit longer to arrive, it would have been a very different story.

“It’s a very old building,” he said. “Old school materials go rather quickly.”

In all, TLVFD responded with two engine trucks, one tanker truck and 21 members. The Paul Smiths-Gabriels Volunteer Fire Department — whose station is 27 miles away from the scene — responded to the scene at 3:45 a.m. with two trucks and nine members. The Saranac Lake Volunteer Fire Department — whose station is 21 miles from the scene — responded at 4:02 a.m. with one truck and three members. Both departments assisted with the overhaul.

The Piercefield Volunteer Fire Department responded to Tupper Lake’s station on stand-by with an engine and manpower. PSGVFD was back in service at 7:04 a.m. and SLVFD was back in service at 5:28 a.m.

“It was a rather quick save of a building,” Cole said. “It was a great response.”

Being ready and answering a call in the middle of the night is taxing, to say the least, Cole said, but the responders do it without thinking twice. Being able to help save people and property in a situation like this, on a largely volunteer basis, takes a special persona — one that should never be taken for granted.

“Tupper Lake is very fortunate to still have one of the larger departments, member-wise, around,” he said. “We’re continuing to try to recruit anybody, anyone who thinks they might want to help their community.”

Cole thanked Paul Smiths-Gabriels, Piercefield and Saranac Lake for coming through on mutual aid responses, and credited good working relationships between the neighboring volunteer fire departments for them being there for each other, physical distance notwithstanding and reinforcing resources when needed.