ORLAND – State and local fire officials have been unable to determine the cause of a fire that destroyed a home on the Bald Mountain Road in North Orland early Monday morning.

Inspectors from the State Fire Marshal’s Office were on the scene late Monday, according to Chief Chris Farley of the Orland Fire Department, but could not tell what had started the fire.

“There was just too much damage,” Farley said. “The building had been burning for at least an hour or more before we got there.”

Firefighters received the call at about 12:53 a.m. Monday. There was some confusion initially, since the fire was located near the town lines of Orland, Dedham and Ellsworth. The first caller, who was awakened by an explosion caused by the fire, lives in Ellsworth and called the Ellsworth Fire Department to report the fire, Farley said. When the residents walked to the site, they realized that the fire was in Orland and notified authorities.

“When we got there the building was totally destroyed,” Farley said. “There was nothing standing except the chimney. It had been burning for sometime before it was discovered.”

Farley said there likely were several explosions during the fire, including the one the neighbor heard. The heating oil tank in the home had one end blown out, and a car in the garage was burned as well.

The building is owned by Robert and Carol Murray of Ellsworth, who had rented the home to Paul and Melissa Grunwaldt, who were out of town at the time of the fire. No one was in the building at the time and no one was injured.

The Grunwaldts had not returned to the area on Tuesday, but Farley said he had notified the Red Cross and the Coast Guard office in Bucksport, where Paul Grunwaldt works, to help them when they return.