A fire was reported Friday afternoon in Chandler Park Apartments, located off Cave Mill Road behind Greenwood Mall. The apartments are the home of some Western community members.

The fire has been contained.

A call to the Bowling Green Fire Department came in at about 4:20 p.m., said Marlee Boening, Bowling Green Fire Department public information officer.

The fire was reported in Building 11. Boening said she didn’t know how many units had been affected or if anyone was hurt.

Paul Breece said he lives in Apartment 1128 in Building 11.

At first, he said he thought it was a small fire.

“I started thinking about getting a hose,” he said.

Bowling Green City Police on the scene referred all questions to the fire department.

Chandler Park officials said they are not making any statements at this time.

Laura Reels said she lives in the apartment beneath 1128.

Her home was also affected by the fire. Reels said she tried to collect photos from her house when she heard the building was on fire.

“I was trying to get pictures, then I turned around and saw the smoke,” she said.

She said Breece told her to get out immediately.

“I smelled it, found it, opened the door, tried to get people out,” Breece said.

Fort Mitchell freshman Kyle Hill and Richmond junior Jonathan Baxter, said they had been driving to the mall when they saw the smoke.

“We saw it engulf, and we pulled the truck over and started yelling at people to get out,” Baxter said.

Baxter said he and Hill went into the building and shouted at residents to leave.

“We went in, banged on doors, tried to open what doors we could,” Baxter said. “Some doors were half open, we pulled them open and yelled, ‘Get the hell out!’”

Hill said he doesn’t know of anyone who was hurt.

Assistant Math Professor Melanie Autin, a resident at the complex, said she was in her apartment when the fire started. She said she threw on her shoes and ran out as fast as she could when she heard the fire alarm.

Autin moved to the apartment building from South Carolina about a month ago to take a job at Western.

Bowling Green junior Dustin DeWitt said he lives in Building 9 of the complex and that he saw the fire on his way home from work at Red Lobster at about 4:10 p.m.

“It didn’t look like a big deal,” DeWitt said.

He said the fire appeared to start at the backside of the building.

DeWitt said he saw the flames get larger before firefighters came to contain the fire.

“I could feel the heat about a hundred yards away,” he said.

DeWitt said he knows some of the women who live in one of the damaged apartments and they are Western students.

He declined to comment on who the women were, but he said they got out of the building all right.

Check www.wkuherald.com for updates as the story progresses.

Reach the reporters at news@chherald.com.