97 cats survive house fire in New York state: Humane Society

PERINTON, N.Y. – Nearly 100 cats have survived a house fire in a town outside Rochester, New York, according to an animal protection group.

The Lollypop Farm shelter had been told as many as 70 cats lived in the Perinton home when it caught fire.

But its workers had rescued 97 cats as of late Thursday, the Democrat and Chronicle reports.

Many of the cats suffered smoke inhalation, the Humane Society of Greater Rochester said, and it wasn't clear whether all of them would survive.

The fire began about 1 a.m. Thursday and was confined to one room, according to the Bushnell's Basin Fire Department.

Two adults were outside when firefighters arrived and declined medical treatment, Bushnell’s Basin Assistant Fire Chief Mark Alberts said.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.