Woman Dies Following House Fire In St. Paul

ST. PAUL, Minn. (WCCO) -- A woman died Sunday morning after St. Paul firefighters struggled to battle the fire that engulfed her home.

The woman died at the hospital after crews pulled her out of the burning home on Rose Avenue East. Firefighters say the search and rescue effort was difficult because the house was packed with belongings.

They found the victim in the bathroom and believe she couldn't make it out because her piles of collections blocked her own escape.

"Having this kind of fuel load in the house makes it easier to have a fire," said St. Paul Fire Marshall Steve Zaccard. "So many combustibles makes it difficult for occupants to escape and firefighters to enter, put the fire out, search for victims and rescue them."

While battling the flames, one firefighter suffered a cut to his hand.

The St. Paul Fire Department identified the woman as 63-year-old Renee Beatrice Tollas, the home's owner.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Officials say this is the second fire fatality in the city this year.