The Sunday morning blaze charred the facade and filled a showroom with smoke. (Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

A fire that appeared to start in mulch caused limited damaged to a Red Bank auto dealership Sunday morning.

Volunteer firefighters, responding to an alarm at Red Bank Nissan, on East Newman Springs Road, arrived shortly after 10 a.m. to find a portion of the western wall ablaze beneath metal siding panels, they said.

The fire appeared to have started in mulch that abutted the facade, allowing the flames to contact the structural wood underneath, firefighters said.

The blaze was quickly brought under control without any evident damage to the dealer’s cars, though the showroom filled with smoke.