Fire breaks out at godown in Rajarhat, no casualties

Kolkata: A fire broke out at a warehouse at Podra near Langolpota in Rajarhat on Thursday morning. Firefighters brought the flames under control at around 5.20 pm. However, none has been injured in the incident.

According to the firefighters, the godown was filled with large quantities of handcraft items (both finished and unfinished), which were extremely inflammable. Fire safety equipment was not present at the premises.

At around 7 am, some local residents noticed smoke coming out from a two-storied godown beside Rajarhat Road. Sensing danger, locals immediately rushed inside the godown campus and alerted the workers who were inside.

With the help of passerby and residents of the area, all the workers were safely evacuated from the godown. Police and fire & emergency services were also informed. After receiving information, both firefighters and police reached the spot without delay.

As there were no other house or construction adjacent to the godown, firefighters got the situation under control. But since the fire had captured the whole godown, they faced difficulties in arresting the fire fast. At first 5 fire tenders were pressed into action. But as time passed, firefighters called for backup. At noon, more fire tenders were sent to the spot from various fire & emergency service stations.

Finally, with the help of 14 fire tenders, the blaze was arrested at around 5:20 pm. According to the police, no one has been injured in the incident. Later, a mobile forensic unit visited the godown and collected samples. The godown in-charge Ashoke Nandi has been detained by the police for further investigation.