Kolkata: The fire that broke out in a ground floor electrical store in Poddar Court commercial complex on Wednesday was brought under control without much damage to lives and livelihood but the incident once again highlighted the precarious state of fire safety measuresin the state's largest market for lights, cables, and electrical fittings.Ezra Street and the bylanes around Tiretta Bazar are home to over 2,000 shops selling lights, electrical fittings, and cables.These areas are densely packed with electrical goods and often flammable materials. While Wednesday's fire at Poddar Court was contained without any significant damage, the area as a whole is a tinderbox waiting to ignite."We were lucky this time, but how many more close calls will it take for the administration to sit up and take note? Most buildings are old and lack fire-safety measures, shops are stacked with inflammable materials, and access to safe space is blocked. It's an accident waiting to happen," said a shop owner in the Poddar Court commercial complex.Sources within the fire department and local traders have often pointed to a dangerous combination of factors contributing to the high fire risk. Inadequate or non-existent firefighting arrangements in many establishments, tangled electric wires snaking through buildings, and narrow and congested access routes make it challenging for fire tenders to navigate effectively in case of an emergency.The narrow streets that surround the Poddar Court area are often blocked by parked vehicles and roadside stalls. Fire-tenders face significant delays just getting to the buildings. "Since it was a weekday afternoon, people could evacuate. But if this had happened at night, the situation could have been different," said a fireman.Fire officials say the area needs regular fire audits, rewiring, installation of fire safety measures, and regular fire drills. "We've proposed several market-level safety drives, but cooperation is limited," said the fire department official. "We need the civic body, police, and business associations to work together.""The lessons from the Mechhua hotel fire are still raw, and we cannot afford another devastating fire," said the official.