Tommy Gozion was up early, as usual, at work making donuts this morning. Then the owner of Valencia Donut Co. on Route 8 in Middlesex Township got an unexpected call about 6:30 a m.

"It was my neighbor " he said. "He says, 'There's a big fire coming from back of your garage.' "

Gozion put his donuts on hold, locked the doors of his shop and ran a minute and a half to his home on Sunny Crest Lane.

He saw flames in back of his detached garage. Inside were tools, an old skid loader and his son's Subaru Legacy.

Gozion grabbed a garden hose and made like a firefighter, hitting the flames with as much water as the hose could offer.

"I was spraying and praying," he said.

Fortunately, Gozion lives next door to the Middlesex Township fire station, and a fire crew arrived within minutes.

"We started the fire attack and had it under control in about 20 minutes," said Tim Tabisz, assistant chief for the Middlesex Township Volunteer Fire Company.

Firefighters also offered Gozion a hand and helped push his son's car out of the fire's way. The vehicle was undamaged by the flames.

"I'm glad about that," he said. "That's a good car."

The garage itself sustained minimal damage. Tabisz said the fire is being ruled accidental, but did know what caused it.

"I don't have a clue either," Gozion said. "There's no electricity out the back of that building."