UPDATE: 5 Long Island Homes Damaged in Fast-Moving Fire

Photos by Rob Silverman of Photography by Silverman

Five homes were damaged and two firefighters were treated for smoke inhalation after a fast-moving blaze broke out Wednesday afternoon near the Great South Bay.

Suffolk County Police responded to a fire that started at home located at 37 E. Santa Barbara Road at about 1:50 p.m. on the Copiague-Lindenhurst border.

The fire spread to four additional houses on the block and embers traveled across a canal, sparking a brush fire at Indian Island County Park, police said.

No one inside the homes was hurt, but two firefighters suffered smoke inhalation. One of the firefighters was transported to Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center in West Islip; the other was treated at the scene.

The Copiague Fire Department responded and extinguished the house fires with assistance from the Amityville, East Farmingdale, Lindenhurst, North Amityville, North Babylon, Wyandanch, North Lindenhurst and Deer Park fire departments.

Boats from the Suffolk County Police Marine Bureau and boats from the Copiague, Babylon, Wantagh, Bay Shore, and West Islip fire departments, as well as the Babylon Town Bay Constable, all helped extinguish the fire on Indian Island, an uninhabited Suffolk County nature preserve.

Neighbors told News 12 that they saw a woman with a baby in her arms rushing out of one of the homes.

"My sister lost her house to this fire today," Joann Daigle posted on the Lindenhurst Patch Facebook page. "This neighborhood was hit hard by [Hurricane] Sandy and she was due to move back in within 2 weeks. I'm so thankful everyone got out of the home that initially caught on fire, my prayers to everyone who was affected today.

Arson Section detectives believe the fire to be non-criminal in nature, police said. The investigation is continuing.

An online fundraiser has been started for a family that lost their home in the fire: https://www.gofundme.com/2km67vf7

Babylon Town Supervisor Rich Schaffer shared a link to the fundraiser on his Facebook page Wednesday night.

"Most of us saw the smoke and pictures of destruction from the fire that struck several homes in the American Venice today," Schaffer wrote. "We are very grateful to our terrific volunteer firefighters led by the Copiague Fire Department and its Chief Dan Campion as well as volunteers from all of our neighboring departments. Now we need to help one of our neighbors during his time of need. Please be as generous as you can!"