Four adults escaped a fire on Deering Avenue in Portland without injury but the blaze badly damaged the three-story building.

Firefighters responded to a report of a fire at 5 a.m. Tuesday and found the back of the building at 40 Deering Ave. burning heavily, said department spokesman Tim Nangle.

Portland Fire Department crews battle a large fire at 40 Deering Ave. in the predawn hours Tuesday. Photo courtesy of Phil LaRou, Portland Fire Department

Portland fire companies prepare to leave the scene of a three-alarm blaze Tuesday morning at 40 Deering St. in Portland. The structure sustained heavy damage to the second and third floors. The roof collapsed into the third-floor attic space Photo Courtesy of Tim Nangle, Portland Fire Department.

The four adults who lived there had already managed to get out.

Fire burned through the roof, causing it to collapse into the attic, and the heat burned the vinyl siding on nearby homes.

Fighters spent about two hours bringing the fire under control. The cause and of the fire is still under investigation, Nangle said.

Firefighters were able to rescue one cat after the fire was brought under control though another one perished in the fire, he said.

Investigators are still trying to determine whether smoke detectors were working and activated in the fire. Nangle said nobody remembered hearing any but investigators were still doing interviews. The fire did activate smoke alarms in a building two doors down the street, he said.

One firefighter was transported to the hospital for a medical condition and was treated and released.

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