LEWISTON – A pair of unrelated fires that destroyed two homes Thursday remained under investigation a day later.

A fire inspector said he was unable to examine the wreckage at 1 Dow Ave. because of water in the building after the 3 a.m. blaze that gutted the home.

Frederick Ream, his wife and two children were unable to return to the house after the blaze. They were being assisted by the American Red Cross.

At 19 Pettingill St., where 86-year-old Romeo Huppe was burned out of his home, an examination of the rubble did not turn up a cause, Lewiston Fire Investigator Peter Morrell said Friday.

“Right now, I can’t rule anything out,” he said.

He was expecting to return to the burned Pettingill Street home with an insurance investigator. He was also going back to Dow Avenue to complete an inspection there once water was pumped from the basement.

Nobody was hurt in the fires.