Had the blaze taken hold later in the evening however, the damage caused could have been far more significant according to firefighters.

"If the fire had started three or four hours later when the business was closed, it could have been a lot more severe," Turvey Park Fire Station officer Jeff Edwards said.

Those concerns were echoed by Daily Advertiser general manager Gary Olson.

"We're fortunate it didn't happen when no one was here ... it could have been a lot worse," he said.

Only a small room containing the hot water system that caught fire was damaged after it was quickly spotted by an electrician working nearby.

The electrician broke down the door leading to the room where the hot water service was located and attempted to extinguish the blaze.

Mr Edwards and Mr Olson both said the electrician's quick thinking made a big difference in containing the fire to a single room.

"He's done extremely well to realise there is an issue ... it's fantastic he was here to shut the power down and attempt to extinguish the fire," Mr Edwards said.

Mr Olson added: “(His efforts) helped and prevented it from spreading.”

After the blaze broke out, the editorial offices at the Advertiser quickly filled with thick, black smoke as employees were evacuated.

Employees sat out on Trail Street as they waited for firefighters to bring the fire under control.

It took 12 firefighters more than an hour to completely extinguish the blaze and allow the smoke to be cleared from the working area.

Firefighters were forced to use thermal imaging equipment to locate the flames with minimal visibility inside the office due to the smoke.

Mr Edwards said finding the fire was the main challenge firefighters faced once they arrived.

The efforts of firefighters in tackling the blaze were praised by Mr Olson, who said they kept him in the loop with what was happening as the incident progressed.

“They kept me and the IT guys up to speed throughout the event,” he said.

On a lighter note, Mr Olson said Thursday’s fire was a good warm-up for the Advertiser’s fire wardens, who had been planning a fire drill for Friday next week.

Employees were let back into the building shortly before 6pm with the fire having been contained and extinguished by firefighters.

Production of Friday’s edition of the Advertiser and sister publications The Area News, The Irrigator and Cootamundra Herald was unaffected by the fire.