Blaze burns down Inverness house.

A two-story Inverness house burned to the ground Thursday morning in a fire that took 15 minutes to put out, authorities said.

The lone occupant was not home at the time.

At 1 a.m., the Palatine Rural Fire Protection District responded to the fire at 330 Poteet Avenue that originated on the first floor and spread throughout the house, said Batallion Chief Ed McGarry.

The man who lived in the house is believed to be in his 50s and is now staying with a relative's friend, McGarry said.

The cause remains under investigation by the Palatine Rural Fire Protection District and the state fire marshal's office. Firefighters and engines from Palatine, Prospect Heights, Long Grove and Barrington also responded to the scene.