WATERVILLE — A home was severely damaged by fire during the wee hours Monday morning as seven people and several pets escaped without injury.

The fire at 6 King Court was reported at 12:08 a.m. by a person who said there was a fire on the outside of the first floor of the home and they were climbing out a rear window to escape.

Waterville Fire Department crews responded and found “a significant amount of fire in the enclosed porch and it was extending into the residence,” according to a statement released by Waterville Battalion Chief John Gromek.

Gromek said there were three adults and four children in the single-family home and no one was injured, although one firefighter was evaluated for fatigue.

All of the occupants were forced to crawl out of a first floor window because the fire was blocking the door, Gromek said, but he could not confirm the names of the occupants as of Monday night.

Firefighter crews also saved three cats, three lizards and a pet rat.

“When they called the fire in, I think they told dispatch that there were still pets in the house,” Gromek said during a phone interview Monday. “And they told the first arriving units as well.”

The home received “extensive damage” from the blaze.

“It’s right on the edge of a total loss,” Gromek said. “It’s an older style house, and the fire made it up into the attic and the second floor walls so there is a considerable amount of damage to the roof …”

A firefighter from the Waterville Fire Department emerges from a burning structure with a live kitten on King Court in the South End of Waterville on Monday. Michael G. Seamans/Morning Sentinel

The owner of the building, Richard Leary, of Fairfield, has insurance, Gromek said.

A car belonging to one of the occupants was parked near the home and was damaged by the fire.

“That damage is repairable,” Gromek said. “(The fire) just melted a headlight and some of the fender and hood on one side of the car.”

The occupants are currently staying with a family member, Gromek said.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation by the Maine Office of State Fire Marshal.

Also responding to the scene were crews from Winslow, Oakland and Skowhegan, while Fairfield crews covered the Waterville department. Fire crews cleared the scene at 3:47 a.m.