STOCKHOLM — Smothering the fire with a rug, Mark W. Murray and David Cantrell thought they could extinguish it.

The rug suddenly ignited, forcing the two men back from the intense heat. While backing up, Mr. Cantrell tripped over something in his mobile home and knocked himself out.

The Winthrop resident quickly grabbed Mr. Cantrell and pulled him outside before the raging fire destroyed the County Route 49 home Tuesday afternoon.

"It is something that you have to do," Mr. Murray said, shunning the hero label. "If somebody doesn't do it, there's something wrong with them."

Firefighters responded to a report of blaze shortly before 5 p.m. at 1669 County Route 49. St. Lawrence County fire investigators were still determining late Tuesday the cause of the fire, emergency dispatchers said.

Neighbor Donald L. Roach, usually doing excavating work, was home Tuesday watching television when Mr. Cantrell called seeking help. Mr. Murray had just pulled into his driveway.

"I saw the smoking coming from the house," Mr. Roach said. "I told Mark to run over and help him out while I called the fire department."

After dragging Mr. Cantrell from the burning home, Mr. Murray and Mr. Roach pushed his pickup truck away from the building.

"Everything happened right to save that guy's life," Mr. Roach said. "The heat was pretty intense when we tried pushing the pickup truck away from the home."

Mr. Cantrell awoke a few moments later and was taken to Canton-Potsdam Hospital, Potsdam, for an evaluation, they said. Mr. Murray said he had been released from the hospital, but didn't know his condition.

"I hope someone does the same for me if I'm in that situation," Mr. Murray said. "I just did something that should have been done."