Published Friday December 23, 2011

A 78-year-old woman died in a house fire Friday morning, Omaha’s first fire fatality in three years, the Omaha Fire and Rescue Department said.

At about 5:45 a.m., firefighters responded to a fire at a one-and-a-half-story wood-frame house at 3941 Hartman Ave. Kathryn Collins was trapped inside, as firefighters tried to tear into the house to rescue her. More than an hour later, she was confirmed dead.

Collins lived in the house with her daughter and son-in-law, June and Percy Curtis. The Curtises have lived in the house for 25 years.

Assistant Fire Chief Don Stolinski said the cause of the fire is unknown but that it appears to have started on the first floor.

June Curtis said the fire started near her mother’s bedroom.

“The fire was closer to her,” she said, “and the firefighters couldn’t get her out. We tried to save her, and we couldn’t.”

Check back at Omaha.com for developments.

– Jay Withrow