BELMAR — Two adjoining 110-year-old homes were destroyed by fire on the Jersey Shore early Wednesday.

Belmar Mayor Matt Doherty said no one was injured by the fire that started in one of the homes on 10th Avenue and spread next door.

Neighbor Frank Hurley said the house where the fire started was engulfed with flames coming out of the roof, throwing heat towards his own home two doors down.

"You saw the flames and the smoke and all the sparks coming off the house. It's like snow coming towards you and you pray your own house doesn't go up in flames. Thank God it wasn't one of those windy nights," Hurley said, adding a wind would have made it much worse.

NJ.com reported that three people in one home and two people in the other all got out safely. Doherty was quoted as saying the fire is not considered suspicious.

"These are my neighbors, the people you wave to when you go by," Hurley said, adding that one of the families lived in one of the homes for over 30 years. "They kept their house up so well and to see it gone is just amazing."

"I am thankful for these people who without fear" who responded to the fire from as far away as Red Bank, Hurley said of the firefighters. "These people are focused on just one thing," he said.

Vin Ebenau and Lou Russo contributed to this report.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com.

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