AUBURN — A fire that destroyed a two-family home on Gamage Avenue on Wednesday morning appeared to be accidental, but officials continued to search for a cause.

Six people were evaluated at the scene for smoke inhalation, fire investigator David O”Connell said. Some were treated for minor injuries.

“The good thing was there were smoke alarms inside the building and they alerted the tenants,” he said.

Firefighters recovered a family cat as they searched the house.

The blaze started in the back of the attached barn and worked its way toward the front of the building, O’Connell said. The second floor and a chimney collapsed.

First-floor tenants carried renter’s insurance, but the second-floor tenants did not, he said.

Brad Sloat, the building’s owner, said the building was unsafe and an excavator will take down what was left. There were antique cars in the garage, but Sloat said he didn’t know if they could be recovered.