A major fire broke out at a shoe godown at Five Star market in Kidderpore in the wee hours of Wednesday. However, no casualty was reported in the incident.
Some of the local residents spotted smoke billowing out the fourth floor of the building at around 6 am on Wednesday. The fire soon spread to other floors as well. Five Star market is situated adjacent to the popular Fancy Market in Kidderpore. Local residents took part in the rescue operations but failed to reach the source of the fire as thick black smoke covered the entire area. They informed the fire brigade about the incident, following which 12 tenders were pressed into action to douse the flames.
The blaze had already engulfed various rooms in the market. The firefighters had to break open the shutter of the godown where raw materials for shoes and clothes were stocked. They also used hydraulic ladders to reach up to the spot from where the fire had originated. The godown was completely gutted in flames.
Apart from the godown that had caught fire, six more shops situated on the fourth and fifth floors of the building were also destroyed.
The fire broke out on the fifth floor of Five Star market at around 6 am, a Fire department official said. He confirmed that nobody was injured as the market was shut at the time of the incident.
Around 12 fire tenders that swung into action brought the situation under control after two-and-a-half hours. The firemen initially tried to restrict the fire from spreading to the other buildings. It is suspected that combustible materials were stored inside the godown.
The personnel from the Disaster Management Group of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and police rushed to the spot. Police closed a portion of the adjacent road and also cordoned off the surrounding area.
According to the preliminary investigation, police and firefighters suspect that an electrical short circuit inside the godown might have caused the fire. They also faced some difficulties while dousing the flames as the market is situated in a densely populated area.
Police and the fire brigade are examining if the building had adequate arrangements for fighting fire. "It was difficult for us to detect the source of the fire and we had to use hydraulic ladders in the operation. Foam was used by the firemen to control the flames and the cause of the fire and the extent of the damage are yet to be ascertained," a senior Fire official said.