Video: When Kolkata airport was engulfed in massive fire

Kolkata Airport fire: While the cause of the blaze has not been ascertained yet, an electrical short circuit is likely to have sparked it. (Image credit: @soundarc2001/Twitter)

A fire broke out near a security counter and a departure gate inside the Kolkata airport on Wednesday night. At least two fire tenders rushed to the spot to douse the blaze and no casualties have been reported.

Videos of the fire doing rounds on social media show the airport engulfed in smoke and chaos among passengers as the airport staff and security tried to put out the blaze using fire extinguishers. While the cause of the fire has not been ascertained yet, an electrical short circuit is likely to have sparked it.

Fire breaks out inside Kolkata's Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport!#KolkataAirport pic.twitter.com/DvYyGe8cZT

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— Adan Zubain (@aitcadan) June 14, 2023

Big breaking news. Fire breaking inside Kolkata Airport.. I hope all are safe. #KolkataAirport pic.twitter.com/JY1aZXiHFi

— Deepika Chaudhary (@Deepika94450916) June 15, 2023

The Airports Authority of India has already begun an investigation into the incident. "There was a minor fire and smoke on the check-in area portal D at 9.12 pm and fully extinguished by 9.40 pm. All passengers are evacuated safely and the check-in process was suspended due to the presence of smoke in the check-in area. Check-in and operation have been resumed now," a statement from the Airports Authority of India, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) Airport, Kolkata said.

Union Minister for Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia said in a statement, "An unfortunate but minor fire broke out at the Kolkata airport near a check-in counter. In touch with the airport director -- the situation is under control. All passengers and staff have been evacuated from the area. Fortunately, everyone is safe and no injuries have been reported. The check-in process resumed at 10.25 pm. The cause of the fire will be ascertained at the earliest."

Meanwhile, the West Bengal Fire Services Minister Sujit Bose told news agency PTI that initially, the authorities believed that the fire was caused due to some fault related to the air conditioning system.

#KolkataAirport #NetajiSubhasChandraBoseInternationalAirport #Kolkata #Airasia #News #AirportFire

Waiting for updates on the the next proceedings. Flight is currently showing delayed. pic.twitter.com/3H7osEezUt

— Saurajit Bose (@saurajit_bose) June 14, 2023

As operations resumed at the Kolkata airport around 10.30 pm, flyers reported a delay in flights without any other inconvenience.

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