The tragedy at the Sodepur garment store could have been bigger had not local residents started rescue work long before the fire brigade and police arrived.

Pranab Bhattacharya was sipping tea with his friends at a stall opposite Readymade Centre when he noticed smoke emanating from the store.

“We realised something was amiss inside and were shocked to notice that the shutters on the first floor were being pulled down,” said Bhattacharya, a trader. “Many people were trapped inside. They were helplessly banging their fists on the shutters.”

As news spread, more people arrived on the spot. Instead of waiting for the firemen and police to turn up, by which time more lives would have been lost, the residents and traders forced open the shutters and ventured in.

“It was pitch dark inside and the room was filled with smoke,” said Pintu Das, one of the rescuers. “We could barely distinguish between the shapes of the people trapped inside, coughing and gasping for breath. Some had collapsed, while others were trying to make their way towards us,” he recalled.

Holding torchlights in their hands, the rescuers moved as quickly as possible, once the air cleared a bit. They were carrying out the trapped shoppers, when the fire tenders arrived. People outside had called up a number of hospitals. Several ambulances had queued up in front of the store and whisked away the victims.