SAN MATEO, Calif. -- A man escaped the deadly flames and smoke of a two-alarm San Mateo County house fire early Wednesday after he was awakened from a sound sleep by his cat, authorities said.

Central County Fire Department Battalion Chief Ed Barton said the fire burned the man's home, which is a guesthouse located in front of a house located at 3037 Canyon Road in unincorporated Burlingame Hills.

The two-alarm fire was burning when the man awoke to put his howling cat outside, Barton said. However, unaware of the fire, the man went back to bed but woke-up again to the cat's insistent meowing.

When the man got out of bed to attend to the cat, he saw the fire and called 911 at about 5:21 a.m., Barton said. Fire crews responded to the blaze and had the fire under control at about 5:40 a.m.

The top story of the two-story house was burned, and about $60,000 of damage was done to the structure, according to Barton. The cause of the fire was under investigation, although it appears to have been caused by electrical problems or the furnace.

The cat was not harmed by the blaze.

Two smoke alarms in the house did not go off because they were not working.

"Now is the time to change batteries in smoke detectors. This is a prime example of why we do that," Barton said.