Bagree Market fire brought under control after two days

Kolkata: The massive fire at Bagree Market in Burrabazar area in the business hub of the city has been brought under control after two days, a senior officer of the fire department said Tuesday.

At the moment the process of “cooling down” was on at the Bagree Market and 15 fire tenders have been pressed into service for it, Director General (DG) of West Bengal Fire & Emergency Services Jag Mohan said.

“The fire has been brought under control. Our officers kept on fighting the blaze and they fought throughout the night. We are continuing our fight as the cooling process is on,” Jag Mohan said.

There was immense heat inside the building and it made things very difficult for fire fighters to continue, he said. No one was injured in the fire, he added.

Another fire department officer said cracks were found on the walls of the building and precautionary measures have been taken to avoid any untoward incident.

“Shopkeepers and a few residents of adjacent buildings have been evacuated. A few cracks were seen on the walls of the Bagree Market building. We are not taking any chances,” the officer said.

The massive fire broke out at Bagree Market around 2.30 am on Sunday, gutting at least 1,000 business establishments inside the G+5 building and causing huge losses to traders ahead of Durga Puja.

The state government has directed the police and the fire department to find out the cause of the fire and initiate strict legal action against those found guilty in this mishap. Police have been directed to summon owners of the building.