A construction site collapsed, and an apartment building was destroyed after a large fire near the University of Massachusetts Amherst's campus on Friday night.

It happened just after 8 p.m. on Olympia Drive when a building under construction caught fire. The Amherst Firefighters union, Local 1764, said it was "one of the largest fires our community has seen."

The Amherst Fire Department said that there were several explosions, "Likely from fuel tanks on the construction site," during the fire that caused the construction site and a nearby crane to collapse. 

The fire then began to spread to nearby buildings, including an apartment building that had a lot of student renters from UMass Amherst. The apartment complex was destroyed, according to firefighters. 

"It was really bad. The roof completely collapsed on fire," UMass Amherst student Saksham Cole said.  

"The university, the town of Amherst, and the management company for a privately-owned apartment building adjacent to the fire are working to support student renters who are impacted. We are grateful for the community's support for our students," UMass Amherst said in a statement. 

The union said its members worked throughout the night.

"Despite being understaffed and stretched thin, their dedication and teamwork prevented what could have been a devastating loss of life," they said in a Facebook post. Several nearby community firefighters responded to the fire to provide help. They said the response was difficult due to the water pressure in the area. 

Crews began to demolish what remains of the apartment complex on Saturday.  

"Because of multiple collapses and fire that was moving throughout, we couldn't safely extinguish it, so we went to a defensive attack. At this point, there is no way with the structural collapse to get firefighters in there to safely extinguish the fire, so the decision was made to take the building down," Amherst Fire Department Assistant Chief Steven Chandler said. 

The town of Amherst declared a state of emergency on Saturday evening, urging residents to stop using water for non-essential purposes as firefighters continue to fight the fire. 

Over one million gallons of water has been used to fight the fire so far.

Students without homes after fire

No injuries were reported from the fire, but over 230 people have been displaced. 

"I feel bad for anyone who has lost really important valuables. I had a lot of clothes, and all my stuff for school is now gone. The school, Red Cross is helping. They're on campus providing some emergency resources," Cole said  

"I'm an international student from Pakistan. So I kind of need my passport, so that's why I asked them, but they were like, 'I don't think we can do that. We are demolishing the place now," said junior Ibrahim Zaheer, who lived on the first floor.

The cause of the fire has not been released, but they did say it is not suspicious.