The fire destroyed a porch on the back of the apartment and caused some damage to the building. It's unclear if the blaze reached the inside of the apartment, Fire Marshal Bob Pratt said.
"Before midnight, smoke started coming from the upstairs and it was called in by Udon," Pratt said. "We arrived and found some flames on the roof."
Fire officials were able to extinguish the blaze and will have an estimate for the total damages at a later time. East Lansing firefighters were assisted by the city of Lansing and Meridian Township.
Jillian Pacer, who lives in the apartment and was home when the fire started, said she thought the fire might have been caused by a cigarette.
"I'm pretty upset about the smoke damage, but I don't think the fire got in," the human biology senior said.
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