South Portland firefighters quickly extinguished a fire that started on the outside of the Chili’s restaurant on Maine Mall Road on Monday morning.

Flames and heavy smoke were reported about 10:40 a.m.

When crews arrived, the exterior of the building was on fire, and firefighters knocked down the flames in about 10 minutes, said Robb Couture, the city’s EMS coordinator and a spokesman for the fire department.

No one was injured, and the restaurant employees who were inside at the time of the blaze all got out safely, Couture said.

Couture lauded the work of firefighters who had to contend with high heat and humidity as they worked to put out the flames.

“The guys were in full gear,” Couture said. “They do a phenomenal job, even in those conditions.”

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.