The village was attempting to locate family members of 79-year-old Marie Davis, who the medical examiner ruled died of heart disease.
Crews had to cut a hole in the roof to reach Davis' body.
A Skokie press release says that since the late 1990s, the village received and responded to four neighbor complaints regarding accumulation of debris outside the house.
In 2003, neighbors and a local Boy Scout troop helped clean up the home's exterior, with village crews disposing of the trash, the release said. A 2009 court order also led to village cleanup efforts outside the home.
"The Village has never received complaints citing concern about debris inside the home," said Skokie Health Director Dr. Catherine Counard in the release.
