Fierce fire in Kolkata’s Salt Lake, dozens of shanties gutted

Kolkata (IANS) | A massive fire broke out in Kolkata’s Salt Lake area on Sunday evening, gutting around 60 shanties, rendering hundreds homeless. Officials said there was no report of any casualty. The fire in Falguni market could not be controlled till around 10 pm and 10 fire tenders were deployed to douse the fire. Panic spread in the area after gas cylinders kept in the slums exploded one after the other.

State Fire Service Minister Sujit Basu and Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation Mayor Krishna Chakraborty immediately rushed to the spot. Efforts were being made to prevent the fire from spreading to the adjacent housing complexes of slums, which have already been engulfed by the devastating fire.

Locals said that the slum in Falguni Bazar area where the fire broke out had more than 100 shanties and most of them were completely gutted in the fire. However, no casualty was reported in this case till the filing of the report. A fire official present at the spot said, “Those who were inside the shanties at the time of the fire have been evacuated safely.”

He said the narrow passage to the shanties created a major problem for fire brigade personnel to reach near the source of the fire.

Chakraborty said that the homeless people whose huts were completely gutted by the fire are currently given shelter in the local community hall. Food has also been provided to them, he said. Alternative arrangements and compensation will be arranged for them.

–IANS