Around 300 shops were gutted after a major fire broke out early on Saturday in Kolkata’s congested Ezra Street. According to fire officials, there are no casualties as all people staying in the adjoining buildings have been evacuated.

“We had evacuated all the buildings. So no casualties,” Indira Mukherjee, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Kolkata Central, told reporters.

Twenty-five fire engines are pressed into action to douse the fire that reportedly broke out due to a short circuit.

Officials said the presence of combustible materials in the buildings that housed shops and godowns for electrical goods and wooden plywood accelerated the spread of the blaze to the adjoining buildings along the narrow lanes of Ezra Street.

“Initially, six fire engines were pressed into action. But as the fire began to spread, more engines were deployed. As the entire area was covered in black smoke, the fire department brought in a smoke sucker to help firefighters enter the buildings. There were a lot of combustible materials inside the shops. We believe the fire spread from a short circuit, but right now the main focus is to bring it under control,” said a senior Fire and Emergency Services officer.

Officials have closed all roads in and around the area to allow fire engines to move freely.

Sujit Bose, Minister of State for Fire and Emergency Services, visited the Ezra Street area, and confirmed the fire has been brought under control, even as it has caused major property damage.

“Our primary task is to douse the fire, which we have done. The cooling process is on. Forensic experts will determine the cause of the fire. I urge all those doing business here to keep firefighting measures in place. Ezra Street is a congested area, and hence, tankers find it difficult to enter the narrow lanes. We will be looking into the fire preventive measures that were in place,“ Bose told reporters.

Kolkata Police Commissioner Manoj Kumar Verma visited the spot and told reporters that the police would investigate if there was any unauthorised construction in the locality. “The forensic team will determine the reason for the fire. Our team is always alert,” Verma said.

Local councillor Santosh Pathak blamed the authorities’ callous attitude for the mishap. “I have written so many times to the local authorities and the police in the past 22 years regarding poor safety standards of the building. But no steps were taken,” he told reporters.

Last week, a fire broke out at a godown in Central Kolkata’s R N Mukherjee Road. The godown, storing computers, motors, and car parts, was part of an old multi-storey building with narrow access lanes. It was located barely 200 metres from Lalbazar, the Kolkata Police Headquarters.