Fire broke out in an abandoned homoeopathy store and its adjoining godown in the Howrah station subway on Sunday morning. The subway is maintained by the Calcutta Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA).

Though no casualty was reported, the sudden blaze sparked chaos. There was a near-stampede as passengers scurried for safety.

Police closed down the subway and asked passengers to take the surface road to reach the station. The shop and the godown were sealed.

Six fire engines were deployed to douse the flames. Fire services officials said the blaze damaged part of the subway. The subway was thrown open again in the evening. Traffic in the railway station area came to a halt for an hour.