A large plume of smoke rose from a fire at an apartment building on the Far Northwest Side of Chicago on Friday afternoon, creating smoke inhalation concerns.

At around 2:45 p.m., video from Sky 5 showed thick smoke rising from the Honeybee apartment complex in the 8600 block of West Foster Avenue near North Cumberland Avenue.

The Chicago Fire Department said their crews evacuated the building and began defensive operations against the fire, using at least two ladders to hose the flames. At least four units were destroyed by the fire and many others were filled with smoke, authorities said.

Smoke from a fire burning in a building filled the air on the far Northwest Side of Chicago Friday afternoon, with flames bursting through windows.

Flames burst from windows on the building’s third floor, video showed.

A person whose 9-year-old brother attends Everett Mckinley Dirksen Elementary School told NBC Chicago he called their mother crying and said he could not breathe due to smoke in the building from the fire.

“There’s a bad fire,” the student told his family over text around 2:30 p.m. “It smells.”

As people evacuated, smoke carried next door to the school, where multiple students said smoke made it into classrooms.

“it kept getting thicker, and thicker, then we heard an announcement go get your coats just in case,” said Nouriman Boulaid, an eighth-grade student.

The fire was under control by 5 p.m., CFD said. No injuries were reported, though many residents were treated for smoke inhalation. One firefighter slipped and fell, officials added.

While the cause remained unclear, the fire prompted CFD officials to deliver a winter safety message.

“If you use a space heater, just make sure you plug it into the walls,” CFD Deputy Chief Donald Walker said. “if you have a Christmas tree, make sure you water and don’t dry out, and unplug and cut off your space heater at night when you go to bed.”

Check back for more on this developing story.