Woman dead after house fire in Toronto’s west end

A woman has died after a house fire in Toronto’s west end, officials say.

Emergency crews were called to a home on Rathburn Road, just east of The East Mall, at around 8:10 p.m. on Tuesday.

Acting Toronto Fire Service Chief Jim Kay said there was heavy smoke and flames coming from the basement after firefighters arrived.

He said a man told crews there was a woman in the basement.

The victim was brought outside of the home by firefighters.

A Toronto Paramedics spokesperson said their crews were taking the woman to a local hospital in critical condition, but Kay later said she was pronounced dead.

The fire was extinguished a short time after crews arrived.

Kay said the cause of the fire hasn’t been determined.