The North Patchogue Fire Department responded to a structure fire Monday at the apartments at 311 Robinson Avenue.

The alarm came in just after 8 a.m. The first arriving chief on the scene was NPFD’s second assistant chief Andrew Zapata, who found a heavy fire load in a first floor apartment and transmitted a “working fire.”

NPFD’s first arriving engine with Capt. Brian Sullivan encountered heavy fire and smoke as they began a search through the apartment and hallway.

Zapata received word that a resident of the adjacent apartment could not egress into the hallway. NPFD firefighter Sean Ohora and Hagerman chief Tom Dunham made entry in that apartment and took the resident to his window, where Hagerman firefighter Ken Dean and Suffolk police officers assisted the man, who had returned to the apartment for his cat, to safety.

An aggressive interior fire attack held the fire to the apartment of origin. Zapata thanked the mutual aid of the fire departments of Hagerman, Medford, Patchogue and Blue Point for their response.