Bainbridge Island firefighters sent out the call for more help on the fire at The 122 before they even arrived at the burning restaurant, Assistant Chief Jared Moravec said Wednesday.

A two-alarm blaze destroyed the popular downtown Winslow nightspot in the early morning hours of July 9. Moravec briefed fire commissioners on the fire at their meeting Wednesday.

Moravec said multiple calls came in at 4:44 a.m. and descriptions of the fire by those calling 911 prompted the fire department to call for outside help.

The quick call for mutual aid lessened the time it took for firefighters from Poulsbo, North Kitsap and Navy Region Northwest in Bangor to arrive at the fire scene, he said.

“Everyone was here pretty quickly because we had called for the second alarm before we even arrived on scene, based on the reports we were getting,” Moravec said.

The speedy request for assistance was critical, he said, due to the travel time that off-island firefighters faced in getting to the scene.

“It’s always easier to turn them around, than it is to get there and find out you need them and then you’ve lost that time,” Moravec added.

Firefighters found The 122 fully engulfed in flames when they arrived, and responding crews took up a defensive position.

“It wasn’t safe to enter,” he said. “Our primary concern was keeping it contained to that building.”

All told, 43 personnel responded to the fire; 26 of them from Bainbridge Island.

“And every single one of those departments, we had work for them to do when they got here,” he said.

The Bainbridge Island Fire Department was assisted in the investigation of the fire by personnel from the Bainbridge Island Police Department, the Suquamish Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and two independent, private fire investigators who were representing insurance companies.

“Officially, the cause of the fire is going to be listed as undetermined,” Moravec said.

Even so, investigators found some evidence that supports the belief that the building was hit by lightning, he said.

“All the investigators came to the same conclusion,” Moravec said.

Fire commissioners said they were impressed with the department’s handling of the blaze.

“Great job,” said Fire Commissioner Glen Tyrrell. “That was a pretty amazing response.