Two homes burned down, three other damaged.

The Memorial Fire Department, with the assistance of a handful of crews from Sussex and Kent counties, fought multiple house fires in high winds in Slaughter Beach on Christmas night.

On Monday, Dec. 25, around 7 p.m., firefighters were dispatched to Bay Avenue and found two houses, two garages, three propane tanks and swaths of beach ablaze. In the end, two houses were destroyed and three others were damaged; total costs are expected to exceed $500,000. There were no injuries reported.

The Office of the Delaware State Fire Marshal is actively investigating the blaze. The fires' cause and origin have not yet been determined.