Kolkata, Sep 16 (UNI) The six-storey building in Central Kolkata's Bagri Market area is still in flames
even after more than 15 hours.
Plumes of smoke are still billowing from the building as the massive blaze, which broke out at around 2.45 AM last night, has spread to all the floors and the building is feared to be completely reduced to ashes.
Property worth crores of rupees are estimated to have been destroyed and a pall of gloom has descended on the businessmen, whose shops have completely been reduced to ashes, as the huge loss will have a cascading impact on them just before Puja.
The affected businessmen have been sparing no pains to extricate whatever they can from the building.
Altogether 30 fire engines, which have been pressed into service to douse the blaze, have been fighting for the past more than 15 hours to douse the blaze, but it's still raging.
Fire Brigade personnel have been finding it too tough to tame the blaze as the area is dingy and congested and couldn't open the hydraulic ladder. But now once again the personnel are trying to deploy hydraulic ladder to tame the blaze.
The personnel said they have been able to prevent the fire from spreading to other buildings.
However, with the evening descending, they are finding it difficult because of poor light.
Two fire Brigade persons sustained injuries and were shifted to hospital.
It was alleged that the building had no proper fire fighting equipment and infrastructure.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, en route to Germany and Italy, told reporters at the airport this morning that there has been no report of any casualty.
Though the cause of the major fire is yet to be ascertained, some eyewitnesses said it was due to some inflammable articles, which sparked the blaze, while some said a shop in the pavement area first caught fire and later it spread to the building, which is stacked with cosmetics, medicines, jewelleries and other goods. Some attributed the cause of the fire to short circuit in the electrical distribution box.
Some opined that huge stacking of deodorants added fuel to the fire, while others said it was due to massive stock of plastics.
Sounds of explosion from inside the building are being heard frequently as air conditioners in all the floors are catching fire.
As cracks were being seen in the walls, people have got panicky and been praying to the Almight so that the fire doesn't spread to nearby buildings.
Kolkata Mayor Sovan Chatterjee, Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar and Deputy Commissioner Javed Shamim have been personally supervising the fire fighting operation.
Mr Chatterjee said they have been trying their best, but fire fighting operation is tough due to a number of buildings.
Locals are pointing their fingers at the late arrival of fire fighters, which was flatly denied by the Mayor.
People have already been evacuated from the area and none got stuck inside the building.
Some ten years back Nandaram market nearby also suffered huge losses due to a massive blaze.
Trinamool Congress Minister Partha Chatterjee said despite several warnings, the building owners and the businessmen don't take any precautionary fire-fighting measure.
Opposition leaders of the Congress and the CPI(M) have blamed the ruling party for the fire, saying it couldn't shun its responsibility.
UNI SJC