Several shanties were engulfed in a significant fire in the Garden Reach area of southern Kolkata on Thursday evening, causing alarm among residents on Christmas Day. The fire originated in a garbage depot area of Garden Reach, where a densely populated slum filled with numerous shacks and shanties caught fire. The exact reason behind the blaze is still under investigation.
Upon receiving information about the fire around 4.30 p.m., the fire department dispatched seven fire engines to the scene. Firefighters successfully brought the blaze under control just before 6 p.m. through their sustained efforts, preventing its spread to nearby areas.
Local authorities mentioned that the area where the fire started had many small shanties, most of which were completely destroyed in the incident. The extent of the damage caused by the fire is yet to be determined. Officials suspect that the fire might have been caused by a short circuit or a cylinder explosion, pending a detailed investigation.
A senior officer from the Kolkata Police stated, “The fire has been extinguished, and several shanties have been destroyed. It seems likely that a short circuit was the cause of the fire. However, the exact reason will be confirmed after a thorough inspection.” The sudden fire on Christmas evening in the slum area led to panic among residents, although no casualties were reported at the time of reporting.
In a separate incident last week, a significant fire broke out in a slum near Eco Park in New Town, which was eventually controlled after extensive efforts involving 20 fire engines. Another fire occurred last week at an oxygen cylinder factory in Kankurgachi in north Kolkata, where multiple cylinders exploded successively, resulting in a major blaze.
