MIDDLETOWN, DELAWARE (8/21/2016) Lightning apparently started two house fires in Middletown this afternoon as strong thunderstorms swept across the state.
One fire was reported to be minor, but the other, in the 500 block of Whispering Trail in the Springmill development, caused extensive damage to the home shortly before 4 p.m.
Flames were shooting through the roof when Middletown firefighters responded.
An elderly couple escaped without injury, according to reports from the scene.
The storm also caused flooding on U.S. 40 in Bear, near the railroad tracks, according to the National Weather Service.
The heaviest rain, 2.43 inches, was measured at Blackbird in southern New Castle County.