Dhaka, April 7 -- A short circuit in an electric kettle at a tea and coffee shop on the ground floor of Bailey Road's 'Green Cozy Cottage' sparked the inferno that claimed 46 lives, according to the Fire Service.

However, their probe also found there was a gas leak in the building, which allowed the fire to spread quickly.

The stairs were also blocked by cylinders, preventing people from escaping the blaze. It was one of several fire safety regulations uncovered by the five-member Fire Service investigation committee.

"If the building had an exit stairway, so many people would not have died," Lt Col Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury, director (operations) of the agency and the head of the probe committee, said on Sunday.

The fire broke o...