Three Malaysian students manged to save themselves in the nick of time from a fire at the 56-unit South Meadow Apartments in Ames City, in the US state of Iowa, early Sunday.

The students, 21 year old Mohamad Khairi Zulkarnian, Mohd. Aminuddin Hamid and Mohd. Khairi Ismail, managed to rush out of their apartment unit after they were awaken from their sleep by a loud knock on their door at 6am local time.

The second-year engineering students at Iowa State University said, they only managed to take with them their wallets and mobile phones while running out of the building.

Their passports however were destroyed in the fire.

Fourteen other Malaysian students, reported staying in the apartments, were either back in Malaysia on vacation or elsewhere.

According to Iowa State Daily.com, about 100 people living in the 56 units of the South Meadow Apartments were displaced.

Initial investigation revealed that the fire started at a garage located beneath the apartments.

Lucklily no fatalities were reported.