Fire guts 300 shops in Kolkata’s Ezra Street; officials say no casualties reported

Around 300 shops were gutted after a major fire broke out early Saturday on Kolkata’s Ezra Street. Fire officials said there were no casualties as residents living in adjoining buildings had been evacuated in time. “We had evacuated all the buildings. So no casualties,” Indira Mukherjee, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Kolkata Central, told reporters, reported the Indian Express.

Twenty fire engines have been deployed to control the blaze, which officials believe was triggered by a short circuit. The fire spread rapidly through the tightly packed stretch of shops and godowns storing electrical goods, wooden plywood, and other combustible items along Ezra Street’s narrow lanes.

“Initially, six fire engines were pressed into action. But as the fire began to spread, more engines were deployed. As the entire area was covered in black smoke, the fire department brought in a smoke sucker to help firefighters enter the buildings. There were a lot of combustible materials inside the shops. We believe the fire spread from a short circuit, but right now the main focus is to bring it under control. Later investigation will be carried out,” said a senior Fire and Emergency Services officer.

Authorities have also shut all roads around the area to facilitate the movement of fire tenders.

Local councillor Santosh Pathak criticised the administration’s inaction, saying, “I have written so many times to the local authorities and the police in the past 22 years regarding poor safety standards of the building. But no steps were taken.”