Man killed in house fire near Lake Villa

One person was killed Tuesday morning after fire broke out in a single-family home near Lake Villa, authorities said.

Lake County sheriff's deputies called to the home on the 36900 block of Corona Drive at 7:38 a.m. arrived to find smoke coming from the northwest side of the residence, sheriff's Sgt. Chris Covelli said.

Firefighters from the Lake Villa Fire Protection District located the 56-year-old male homeowner dead in a bedroom, Covelli said. Authorities say they will release the man's identity Wednesday.

A preliminary investigation indicates the fire is not suspicious, and was possibly caused accidentally, Covelli said.

Sheriff's detectives, the fire protection district, Illinois Office of the State Fire Marshal and Lake County coroner's office continue to investigate the cause of the fire, authorities said.

Neighbors Betty and Norbert Pischke said the victim was a "very nice neighbor" who was always kind to them in the 10 years he lived in the area.

"He was always very nice and congenial," Betty Pischke said. "I was shocked this morning. If you look at the house, the outside doesn't look too bad."

"We would meet each other at the mailbox and talk. He was always very nice," Norbert Pischke said.