A man who escaped from a massive fire at an apartment in Moose Jaw, Sask., says he might not be alive today if it wasn't for his cat, Chloe.

Shawn Delorme was one of seven people who had to flee when fire swept through the three-storey building on 1st Avenue NW downtown on Monday.

Shawn Delorme says his cat seemed to know it was a do-or-die situation. (Dean Gutheil/CBC)

Delorme says he was fast asleep and might have perished if the calico kitty hadn't leapt on his pillow, meowed loudly and scratched his face.

"She had that instinct to say, 'Hey buddy, get up. You're going to die if you don't,'" Delorme told Garth Materie of the CBC Radio program Blue Sky.

He jumped out of bed, grabbed a few things and opened his door to find the hallway filled with smoke.

A police officer who was nearby yelled for him to get out and he did, but Chloe was nowhere to be seen.

Delorme hopes she ran out the door and somebody else is now taking care of her.

He recalled that only three months earlier, he adopted Chloe after rescuing her from the cold.

Fire swept through the building on the 100 block of 1st Avenue NW, closed to River Street. (Submitted by Nick Pettigrew)

Delorme lost most of his belongings and is staying at the local Travelodge.

On Tuesday, he was continuing his search.

He asks people to keep an eye out for a small, skinny calico cat with a purple and pink collar.