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300 Students Evacuated Due To Fire In EMU Dorm

YPSILANTI (WWJ) - Hundreds were startled, but no one was seriously hurt when Eastern Michigan University students were forced out of their dorm by a fire early Tuesday morning.

Fire officials say there was a lot of smoke coming out of the common area at the 5-story Phelps Hall, a freshman dorm on E. Circle Drive, but no flames were spotted. At around 2 a.m., about 300 affected students were evacuated and temporarily relocated until crews were able to clear all of the smoke from the building.

EMU officials said one student suffered smoke inhalation and was taken to a local hospital for observation, but there were no other injuries.

The school said most of the students were allowed back inside the building before 9 a.m.

Talking to WWJ's Mike Campbell outside the building, resident Brittany Jurgens of Saginaw said it's a mess in there.

"It was really scary," she said. "And even, I just went inside and there's tape everywhere and black everywhere. It was really scary, especially in the middle of the night."

Another resident, Blaine Warmbein of St. Joseph, was anxious to survey the damage.

"I'm interested to see if my room smells like smoke at all for sure," he said, after he spent the early morning hours with other displaced students moved to a neighboring dorm.

Investigators said the fire appears to have started in a second floor lounge, a common area.

The cause of the fire still unknown. An investigation is ongoing.

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