An Eastern student was attacked early Sunday in the area of Fourth Street and Harrison Avenue.

“It was an Eastern student involved,” said Dan Nadler, vice president for student affairs. “She’s fine physically and we’re grateful for that.”

The Charleston Police Department reported the attack took place at 1 a.m. Sunday. A Charleston police officer was sent to the area in regards to an alleged battery.

The woman described the suspect as a white male, chubby, 5 feet 10 inches tall, 25 to 35 years old.

The suspect was wearing jeans, a black T-shirt with a small white emblem on the left side of the shirt and a black ski mask.

The woman told officers the suspect fled the area going west on Harrison.

Eastern received notification of the incident late Wednesday afternoon and sent an e-mail to the university community.

“It was important to get the information to the campus community,” Nadler said.

The university stopped all traffic on the Eastern mainframe in order to deliver the e-mail in a timely manner. The e-mail was sent at 3:55 p.m. Wednesday and was in student and staff mailboxes by 4:01 p.m.

Nadler said even though the attack did not happen on campus, student safety is of the utmost importance to the administration.

“With an unknown suspect, it’s better to err on the side of caution,” Nadler said.

Anyone with information concerning the attack should call the Charleston Police Department at 348-5221.