Kolkata, Nov. 6 -- A major fire broke out at a warehouse storing car spare parts and other materials near the Kolkata Police headquarters at Lalbazar on Thursday morning, triggering panic among employees of nearby offices and shopkeepers.
Five fire tenders battled the blaze through the afternoon and the flames were fully doused by night. Police, however, said in its report that six fire tenders were deployed. No injuries were reported.
According to sources, around 10:45 am, pedestrians noticed thick black smoke billowing from the ground floor of a three-storey commercial building at 21, R.N. Mukherjee Road. Police and the fire brigade were immediately informed. The dense smoke caused breathlessness among several people in the vicinity.
Firefighters wearing oxygen masks entered the building and broke windowpanes to let the smoke out. Officials said the blaze spread rapidly, possibly because the warehouse also contained inflammable materials and chemicals besides auto parts.
The blaze was brought under control around 3:40 pm, but cooling operations continued for nearly five hours to prevent any fresh outbreak. Though the exact cause of the fire is yet to be determined, preliminary investigations suggest it may have been triggered by a short circuit.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.