An elderly man escaped a devastating house fire on Bainbridge Island Wednesday morning after the man’s cat woke him up before flames fully engulfed his home on Miller Road.

The residence, a double-wide manufactured home, was destroyed in the blaze, said Assistant Chief Luke Carpenter of the Bainbridge Island Fire Department.

Carpenter said the man was the only person home at the time, and he suffered from smoke inhalation but was otherwise OK.

The fire was originally reported by just after 4 a.m. March 11 by a neighbor as a possible brush fire, but firefighters discovered a structure fire when they arrived at the home in the 12300 block of Miller Road.

The assistant fire chief said the resident was able to escape the smoke-filled home before the fire destroyed the house, and he was already outside when the fire department got to the scene.

Carpenter said the resident told firefighters “the cat was making a ruckus,” and he woke up to find smoke in the house.

“Apparently he was awakened by the cat,” Carpenter said.

The cat has not been found, he said.

Authorities are not yet sure what caused the blaze.

“The cause of the fire is under investigation but it appears accidental,” Carpenter said.

The home is uninhabitable and the resident is getting assistance from the Red Cross.

At the height of the fire, approximately 25 firefighters were battling the blaze, Carpenter said, including units from Poulsbo and North Kitsap. Due to the severity of the fire, firefighters took a defensive position and did not enter the home.

Miller Road remained closed as firefighters finished up at the scene Wednesday morning.

“What we’re doing right now is watching hot spots. It’s dangerous to go into the house or anywhere near it,” Carpenter said.

No firefighters were injured while fighting the fire, he said.