A suspicious fire burned about a two-and-a-half-square-foot area of the wooden handicap access ramp of the Coopers Mills post office early Tuesday, Whitefield Fire Chief Scott Higgins said.

A passerby spotted and reported the fire, so that was fortunate, Higgins said. Otherwise, given the time of day, about 3 a.m., the fire might have gone unnoticed and spread to the attached post office, he said.

Another help was the building’s location at 128 Main Street, hundreds of yards from one of the fire stations. A fire engine from there and one from the central station were brought to the scene. The fire was quickly put out, Higgins said in a phone interview. About 10 fire department members responded.

The time of day, with the building closed and no apparent basis for a fire to start on a wooden ramp on asphalt, made the fire suspicious so the State Fire Marshal’s Office was contacted, Higgins said.

A representative from the Fire Marshal’s Office visited the scene and would be continuing to investigate, Higgins said.

The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office also responded to the scene,  Higgins said.

The ramp was taped off after the fire and Higgins did not know when it would reopen, but the post office would be able to open and operations would not be affected, Higgins said.