Apartment fire turns deadly

A fire that began late Saturday night turned fatal and sent three people to the hospital with smoke inhalation.

The fire started just after 10 p.m. on Saturday at the Azteca Apartments in Pueblo.

“I was awoken by the Pueblo Police Department and I was sound asleep. As soon as they told me that, they were checking to see if people were OK,” said Robert Evans, a resident at the Azteca Apartments.

The fire was on the ninth floor of the 14-story building. It started when Linda Collins was smoking with the use of home oxygen.

“She was a lovely lady and it cost her her life last night,” said Evans.

Collins was transported to the hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival.

Pueblo fire officials say three other people from the building were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.

Residents on the top floors say that the smoke from the fire was so thick that it woke them up.

“I had a towel with water over my face,” said Helen Corriveau, a resident at the Azteca Apartments.

Azteca owner Michael Escapado says because of the way the building is made, a tragedy was averted.

“We designed it specifically with fire retardant and fire systems in place,” said Escapado.

Friends say Collins was a great woman and she will be missed.

“I knew it was my friend, it’s just, the spirit of love and I knew,” said Evans.

A fire investigator with the Pueblo Fire Department told us they train in that building for fires in high-rises. They say without that opportunity, it could have been a lot worse.