Crews found heavy fire at the Old Post Road lodge early Saturday and spent hours battling the blaze.

EDISON, N.J. — Firefighters responding to the Edison Elks Lodge on Old Post Road early Saturday, Sept. 26, found flames throughout the building and called for a second alarm. Crews fought the fire from outside because of its extent, according to the Edison Firefighters Association.

Correction: Shore News Network received a user-generated photo of this fire and used it for the main feature. We later learned the image was heavily manipulated and has since been removed.

Edison Police Dispatch received multiple calls reporting the fire at approximately 5:44 a.m. Firefighters remained at the scene for several hours extinguishing the blaze and checking for remaining hot spots.

A loss close to home for firefighters

The lodge is Edison Elks No. 2487, located at 375 Old Post Road, according to the Elks’ lodge listing. elks.org For some of the firefighters called to the scene, the building was also their own lodge.

“Many of our members are also members of the Elks, making this loss particularly personal to our members,” the firefighters association said. It called the lodge “a cornerstone of our community” and said its members stood ready to help as the Elks begin recovering and rebuilding.

The association thanked the mutual aid companies that covered Edison fire stations during the response. It did not provide a cause of the fire or information about injuries in its account.