Two Vicksburg men acted quickly Thursday afternoon, saving their neighbor’s house in the process, Vicksburg Fire Department Assistant Chief Craig Danczyk said.

Using garden hoses, Joseph Bell, a school resources officer at Warren Central Junior High School, and Curtis Blades, a civil engineering technician with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Engineer Research and Development Center, helped quell the fire that burned portions of a garage at 1218 Forrest St.

About 3:40 p.m., Bell was at home across the street while Blades was in his backyard next to the house, which is owned by Lee Abraham.

“I was standing on my porch and saw some black smoke, so I knew it wasn’t just a brush fire,” Bell said. “I was running over and saw flames shooting up to the roof.”

As Bell ran across the street, Blades noticed the fire.

“I was sitting in my backyard on the phone and saw the smoke,” Blades said.

The pair met in the driveway, hooked up two hoses and began spraying the fire.

“I try to look out for my neighbors,” Bell added.

Vicksburg Fire Investigator Leslie Sanders said this morning the fire was accidental.

“It was an electrical failure through the air and heating unit,” Sanders said. “There was a problem with the faulty wiring that went to them in the garage.”

Danczyk said Bell and Blades likely helped prevent the fire from burning the house itself.

“Luckily, it looks like the home is going to be OK,” Danczyk said. “Some good neighbors with a garden hose beat the fire down. As it looks now, most of it is contained to the attached carport.”