Kankurgachi godown blaze: Residents count losses after narrow escape from deadly fire
Telegraph | 20 December 2025
The day after oxygen cylinders exploded and rained down on a Kankurgachi neighbourhood like missiles during a fire — damaging buildings and shattering windows — families in the community took stock of their losses on Friday and began repairing their homes to fend off the cold.
Bent frames and broken windowpanes and doors in residential buildings near the oxygen cylinder godown that caught fire early on Thursday were a common sight in Ghoshpara Lane in Kankurgachi on Friday.
Anindita Das, 53, who lives on the third floor of Block A, one of the two blocks inside the compound near the godown, said a windowpane in her kitchen was shattered in the explosion. She got it repaired on Friday.
“One of our window glasses broke during the explosion of oxygen cylinders. We had to repair it at once as we were leaving for a vacation today (Friday),” she said.
Several residents expressed that they were allocating thousands to return their homes to a liveable state. “The fright of last night has profoundly affected us. We now have to confront these expenses,” said one of them.
Homes closer to the godown bore the brunt of the blast. Deepa Gupta, 54, of Block B, said her family incurred losses exceeding ₹10,000. “Nine to ten window glasses, along with their frames, were damaged. Even our main door was affected,” she said.
“It took nearly an entire day to clear glass shards scattered across the rooms,” she said.
Gupta said the family planned to lodge a formal complaint about the damage.
According to police, if they receive any complaints from the neighbours, they will combine it with the complaint that the fire department.