Investigators were unable to determine the cause of the Oct. 31, 2024, fire at 706 Waterville Road in Skowhegan that took the life of the homeowner. Jake Freudberg/Morning Sentinel file

SKOWHEGAN — Investigators were unable to determine the cause of a house fire on Halloween that fatally injured the homeowner.

The cause of the Oct. 31, 2024, blaze at 706 Waterville Road has been listed as “undetermined,” Shannon Moss, a spokesperson for the Office of State Fire Marshal, said via email Friday.

The Office of Chief Medical Examiner also confirmed the identity of the man who died as Janusz Jankiewicz, 80.

His son, Krzysztof Jankiewicz, had previously identified Janusz Jankiewicz to the Morning Sentinel, shortly after the fire.

A backlog at the Office of Chief Medical Examiner led officials to withhold releasing the undetermined cause of the fire while they were waiting for a positive identification of Jankiewicz, according to Moss.

The fire marshal’s office said Jankiewicz suffered severe burns in the fire and was taken by LifeFlight of Maine from Redington-Fairview General Hospital in Skowhegan to MaineHealth Medical Center in Portland.

He died at the Portland hospital the next day, the fire marshal’s office said at the time.

The house, on U.S. Route 201 about 3 miles north of the Sappi paper mill and about 3 miles south of the center of Skowhegan, was destroyed.

Jankiewicz was an immigrant from Poland who lived in Skowhegan for decades, according to his son and a 1983 Morning Sentinel story. In Poland, he was a labor activist.

For many years, he worked at the former Skowhegan Drive-In Theatre, according to a Facebook post written by its former owner, Don Brown.

“The technical and mechanical skills that he brought with him from Poland were well suited to the drive-in, where carbon arc lamps and mechanical projectors were still employed,” the post said. “After digital projection eliminated film, Janusz could be found in the ticket booth every weekend. He remained with the drive-in until shortly before its closing in 2023.”