Multiple shops gutted in inferno at Park Circus, none injured

Kolkata: A major fire broke out at a shop located on Rifle Range Road in Park Circus on Wednesday afternoon. Fire subsequently spread to some other shops as well. 15 fire tenders doused the fire after a couple of hours. However, no one was injured in the incident.

According to locals, flames were seen inside a plywood shop at around 1:30 pm on Wednesday. Apart from plywood, bamboos and materials made from Poly Vinyl Chloride (PVC) were also kept inside the shop. As soon as fire touched the inflammable objects, the situation took a turn for the worse. Local residents tried to douse the fire by pouring water, but were not able to do so as it had already started spreading.

Immediately, the fire brigade and Karaya police station were informed. Primarily, four fire tenders were pressed into action, but before they could reach the area, fire had already spread to some other adjacent shops where more inflammable materials were stored.

Within minutes, the whole area got covered in thick black smoke. Local residents got panic stricken as there were several electrical and other wires close to the gutted shop. While dousing the fire, firefighters had to face problem as the area is alarmingly congested, which restricted their movement partially. Also as there is no water body near the spot, fire tenders had to travel a long way to refill their water supply. Seeing the intensity of fire increasing, more fire tenders were called in.

Later, 11 more fire tenders were sent in phases. Apart from dousing the fire, firefighters also evacuated the shops adjacent to the gutted ones.

The situation was feared to get worse as the Sealdah South section railway track was close to the spot. There were several high-rise buildings near the spot as well. Primarily, firefighters sprayed water at the outer part of the fire to prevent it from spreading. After almost one and a half hour, they successfully arrested it. Soon, the process to douse the fire started.

At around 4 pm, firefighters brought the flames under control. Later, the cooling process went on for more than an hour. The cause of fire and the extent of damage could not be ascertained till Wednesday night. Locals suspect that the fire had occurred due to a short-circuit. According to sources, despite several inflammable articles being stored, no firefighting equipment could be seen in any of the shops.