They fought a fire.

A blaze at a new car lot near the base was too much for the British military firemen and their 45-year-old Green Goddess firetruck.

The Americans were called to help about 4:30 a.m. Friday, said Bill Nowlin, the civilian fire chief at RAF Alconbury.

“We ended up putting out the fire, and they helped us using our line,” he said Monday morning. “They wouldn’t have been able to put the fire out without us.”

British firefighters went on strike at 6 p.m. Wednesday and came off the strike at 6 p.m. Friday as a part of a labor dispute spawned by a demand for more higher wages.

Firefighters from British military bases were placed on alert, but the equipment they have is ancient compared to that of civilian departments and the U.S. military.

Before the strike, Air Force officials said their fire departments could help if asked and if the resources were available.

The RAF Alconbury unit was the only one called upon. Firemen at RAF Lakenheath, RAF Croughton and RAF Mildenhall responded to no off-base calls during the two-day walkout, officials at those bases said.

Nowlin said the British firefighters called to Friday’s fire, which occurred at a car storage area on an abandoned part of the base, were unable to bring the blaze under control.

“What started out as a one-car fire became a 13-car fire,” he said.

The blaze was so hot, the magnesium wheels on some cars melted.

The fire — which caused no injuries — was a welcomed diversion for the American firemen, Nowling said.

“My guys really enjoyed it because they finally got to go out and fight a fire,” he said.

The Air Force’s fire prevention efforts have been so successful, he said, that fires on bases are almost nonexistent.

“We were glad to help them out,” he said.

They may get another chance. The British firefighters’ union has scheduled an eight-day strike to begin Friday if no deal is reached.

Andy Gilchrist, the leader of the Fire Brigades Union, has hinted that firefighters, who initially demanded a 40 percent increase in pay to $49,600 a year, were prepared to negotiate.

Two more eight-day strikes are planned for December if there is no resolution.