An elderly man reportedly died in a house fire early today in Schuylkill County.

The fire was reported about 12:50 a.m. in East Brunswick Township.The property that burned is located at 34 Schuylkill Road in the village of Hecla.Kenneth R. Gernert, 64, was pronounced dead at the scene at 4:38 a.m. by Schuylkill County Deputy Coroner Joseph S. Pothering.Several fire companies, including New Ringgold, Orwigsburg, Tamaqua, West Penn and surrounding communities responded.They battled the blaze for four hours and remained on scene until after 7 a.m.Christian Alexix, New Ringgold fire chief, and state police fire marshal Trooper Michael Yeity are still investigating the blaze.