Woman perishes in Sunshine Coast blaze

A woman has died in a ferocious house fire on the Sunshine Coast.

Firefighters were called to a retirement neighbourhood in Pelican Waters about 5am today, where a single level home on Archer Court was well alight.

Twenty-two firefighters fought the flames, a Queensland Fire and Emergency Service spokeswoman said.

Neighbours say they heard a woman screaming "at the top of her lungs" after they were woken by "an almighty crack".

A 77-year-old man was taken to hospital to be treated for burns and smoke inhalation, however his wife died in the fire.

The house was sealed off and will remain a crime scene as police investigate the cause of the fire.

The home was reportedly occupied by an elderly Italian couple who moved to the neighbourhood in 1998.