Fire in food stall at Kolkata’s Sealdah station, triggers panic

Kolkata, Aug 31 (AHN) A fire broke out at a food stall on the busy Sealdah Station premises in Central Kolkata on Monday, triggering massive panic among passengers.

The fire was detected around 9.20 a.m. when the station premises, one of the two most important railway connecting points between the state capital and the suburbs, was heavily crowded as thousands of people were arriving to go to their offices or workplaces.

Three fire tenders were at the spot, trying to bring the fire under control. More fire tenders will be joining, said the officials. As yet, no casualty or injury has been reported because of the fire. However, panic has gripped the station premises as the fire broke out at a time when the station premises, with two wings of north division and south division, remained extremely crowded with thousands of people arriving there at the same time.

A fire services department official present at the spot told media persons that on Monday morning at around 9:20 a.m, thick smoke was seen coming out of a food stall in the Sealdah station premises. “The smoke engulfed almost the entire station premises instantly. The passengers started panicking and shouting. The fire services department was informed. As soon as the information was received, three fire engines immediately reached the spot. We expect to get the fire under control soon, the department official said.

He added that the panic among the commuters present at the station premises was much more than the actual intensity of the fire. “However, the matter could have been serious considering that there are several other food stalls and shops with inflammable items adjacent to the food stall where the fire broke out. So, our first target was to prevent the spreading of fire, which we successfully did,” he added.

Fire officials claim that there is considerable doubt whether the fire at the shop adjacent to the station had the minimum fire safety arrangements. Officials also claim that proper water supply service was not available. "The fire department is working to extinguish the fire with its own water. For now, the flames are not visible from outside. However, the entire station premises are still covered in smoke," said the officials.

Earlier this month, there were two major fire incidents in West Bengal, taking a toll of 18 lives, nine in each case. The first incident was at a hotel at Tarapith in Birbhum district and the second at a hotel at Mirza Ghalib Street in Central Kolkata.