Blaze victim to be woken from coma

The Auckland woman who had to be resuscitated by firefighters after a blaze at her inner-city apartment is expected to be brought out of a drug-induced coma today.

The 32-year-old, who has not been named, suffered third-degree burns during the fire, which started in the bedroom of her third-floor Madison on the Square apartment on Sunday morning.

Sprinklers extinguished the blaze.

Fire investigators believe the blaze, which forced the evacuation of the eight-floor building, may have been caused by a smouldering cigarette on the woman's mattress as she slept.

The woman, who is in Middlemore Hospital's burns unit, had surgery on Sunday night to remove burned flesh from her leg.