One person dead after Fort Collins house fire

A woman died in a house fire just west of Fort Collins city limits Sunday morning.

Poudre Fire Authority firefighters arrived shortly before 5 a.m. at the home, where they found the back of the structure fully engulfed in fire, according to a PFA news release.

Responding firefighters made a quick attack on the fire and searched for victims inside the two-story, single-family home at 4512 Idledale Drive — southwest of the intersection of South Taft Hill and Harmony roads.

They found a woman who had broken the window in a second-floor bedroom but was unable to escape.

She was the only person in the home at the time of the fire, according to PFA spokeswoman Madeline Noblett. 

UCHealth EMS and Larimer County Sheriff's Office personnel responded to the early morning fire as well. The Larimer County Coroner's Office notified the woman's immediate family and will release her identity and cause of death at a later time.

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The origin and cause of the fire are still under investigation. The fire caused significant damage throughout the home, including to the basement and roof, according to PFA.

Fatalities related to fires are rare in Northern Colorado.

A 66-year-old man suffered fatal burns after his stovetop ignited his clothing at his central Fort Collins apartment June 3.

Before that, the last fire that resulted in a fatality in Fort Collins happened in August 2012, when a residence caught fire in the 2600 block of Lodi Court on the city's west side. The blaze inside the cluttered residence fatally injured a 64-year-old woman.

Reporter Cassa Niedringhaus covers breaking news for the Coloradoan. Follow her on Twitter: @CassaMN.