A house fire in Columbia Heights has claimed the life of a woman who lived there, authorities said Wednesday.

The blaze struck shortly after 8:30 p.m. Tuesday at the home in the 1000 block of 44½ Avenue NE., fire officials said.

The 53-year-old woman trapped in the blaze was removed by firefighters and taken to Hennepin County Medical Center, where she died, Fire Chief Gary Gorman said. The woman's identity has yet to be released.

Three men escaped the burning home unscathed.

The fire was confined mostly to a back bedroom, and firefighters knocked it down fairly quickly.

Authorities have yet to determine how the blaze started.

Star Tribune, Star Tribune
The resident of a house on 44 1/2 Ave. NE in Columbia Heights was taken away by ambulance after a fire broke out in the home Tuesday night, February 4, 2014. She later died.

Paul Walsh