Madison Heights hotel damaged in early morning fire

MADISON HEIGHTS, Va. – An early morning fire left a Madison Heights hotel heavily damaged. 

A caller reported the fire at University Inn at 2:54 a.m. Tuesday. The hotel is on Amherst Highway, close to the Taco Bell. 

When firefighters arrived, they were greeted by heavy fire in the office area of the hotel.

The hotel was evacuated and no one was hurt. The fire did not impact the hotel. 

The power was turned off and the people staying there were moved to a different hotel. 

Rodney Stephens and his wife were hotel guests, living there for about a week. 

"When he told us we had to evacuate the building, we didn't understand how bad the fire was until we walked outside," said Rodney Stephens. "When I seen the fire then I realized how lucky we were for them to come in and wake us up like they did. It could've been a lot worse."

Amherst County Public Safety is handling the investigation. There is no word yet on what may have caused the fire.