BATON ROUGE - Firefighters with the St. George Fire Department were called to battle the blaze of a house fire late Monday night.

The fire was reported around 11:04 p.m. at home on Basin Court near Metairie Drive. At the scene, firefighters found heavy smoke and visible flames.

Authorities say the house was severely damaged by the fire and intense heat. The area that suffered the least fire damage was the garage, which housed a home daycare center. According to the fire department, the daycare was operated through a program overseen by the State Fire Marshal's Office.

One person was at the residence asleep at the time of the fire. She was awakened by the smoke detector. Officials say the woman called 9-1-1 and attempted to put out the fire herself. Eventually, she was forced to evacuate the home due to heavy smoke. Authorities say she wasn't injured.

The cause of the fire hasn't been released at this time.