A Delaware Township woman escaped with only minor injuries when her home was destroyed by fire early Tuesday.

The home, a historic log cabin at 35 District Road, is owned by Andrew and Patsy McCullough, who had lived there for about five years.

Fredonia Fire Chief George Benninghoff said McCullough was out of town on business and believes Mrs. McCullough was awakened by the smoke, which saved her life.

"My understanding is that she woke up coughing from the smoke, looked downstairs and saw the first floor on fire," Benninghoff said.

Benninghoff said he didn't know if Mrs. McCullough "jumped out of a second-floor window or off the porch" because she had already been taken to UPMC Horizon, Greenville, to be treated for smoke inhalation and minor injuries before he arrived.

Benninghoff said he also was unsure if the house had smoke alarms.

"I did not see any smoke alarms," he said. "But if there were any, they were gone."

Two family dogs were killed in the blaze.

No cause had been determined as of Thursday, Benninghoff said, adding he was awaiting word from a state police fire marshal who investigated.

"When we're not able to determine a cause, we have to call the state fire marshals," Benninghoff said. "There's no reason to suspect that the fire was anything other than accidental, but we have to put a cause down."

Benninghoff said they "pretty much determined the room it started in because of the burn pattern -- the living room or day room -- where the wood burner was at, but none of us felt the wood burner had anything to do with the fire."

Benninghoff said the call came in at 12:08 a.m. and Fredonia volunteers were on the scene 14 minutes later.

"Fire was coming out of every window of the house," Benninghoff said, describing the scene upon their arrival.

Fredonia was assisted by volunteers from Mercer East End, Jefferson and Hempfield townships and Transfer, who supplied tankers and manpower, Benninghoff said. They battled the blaze until about 5 a.m.

No damage estimate was available for the house that was believed to have been built in 1804, Benninghoff said, but "because it was a log house, there may be some historical value that the insurance company would go along with rebuilding it. But basically it was totaled."

Mrs. McCullough's condition, or whether she even remained hospitalized Thursday, was unknown because of a new hospital policy that restricts the release of patient information. It was also unknown where the family is staying.