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3-Alarm Fire Forces Evacuation Of UC Berkeley Dorm

BERKELEY (KCBS)— The Berkeley Fire Department plans to stay at the scene of a Friday night blaze that burned for six hours at a 39-unit apartment building at Haste and Telegraph.

A spokesman said the fire started shortly before 9 p.m. There were no reports of injuries and the four-story building was deemed uninhabitable as the source is still under investigation.

Fire officials said they will be on hand throughout the weekend putting out hot spots. Investigators could not yet get inside the building near the Cal campus because it is unsafe to enter.

Meanwhile 200 students that lived in the nearby Beverly Cleary Hall on Cal's campus had to be evacuated because of smoke.

Cleary Hall freshman resident Regina Kim stood outside with hundreds of others and watched firefighters battle the flames in what she called a "surreal" end to a crazy week on campus.

"The shooting on campus, all the protests and yeah—it's just been really hectic around campus," said Kim, who added her heart goes out to all the displaced students.

"It's so close to finals week and everybody's been studying. I can't imagine having to buy new stuff," Kim said.

The fire chief said 20 of those students are getting assistance from the Red Cross and others will be staying with family and friends.

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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