Man killed in Kensington house fire

A man was killed in a Kensington house fire this morning.

Fire officials said the blaze at the row home on the 2700 block of Helen Street was reported at 6:05 a.m.

Emergency crews encountered heavy fire on the first floor of the house, and PECO was called to the scene to investigate a potentially illegal electric hookup, the fire department said.

One man was found dead inside the home. He was not immediately identified.

No other injuries were reported.

The Fire Marshal's Office is investigating the cause of the blaze, which was declared under control at 6:34 a.m.

Fire Commissioner Derrick Sawyer told NBC Philadelphia that the death was the 24th fire fatality in the city this year, equal to the number of fire deaths in all of 2013.