A fire broke out in a chemical godown in a congested locality off Burrabazar on Thursday afternoon.
The flames threatened to leap across to the other shops and residential buildings, but were contained in time.
Police said there were no reports of anyone being injured.
“Initially, some people, including a child, who live in the residential apartment above the godown were trapped. However, they were evacuated on time,” said an officer of the central division of Kolkata Police.
The fire was first spotted around 2.30pm on Thursday.
Traffic was stalled on NS Road, close to Howrah bridge.
Thursday’s blaze was reported a day after a furniture godown on BB Ganguly Street, also in central Calcutta, was gutted.
The cause of the fire in the chemical warehouse has yet to be ascertained. “The godown was packed with inflammable items, which helped the flames to spread. We did not find any firefighting gadgets there,” said an officer of the fire department.
The firefighters used water jets and foam extinguishers.
Sources said a forensic team would visit the spot after the affected area cools off.
“The exact cause of the fire and the seat of fire will be found out only after the forensic team visits the spot,” said the official.
Burrabazar is a congested neighbourhood with commercial and residential establishments along narrow, dingy lanes and bylanes.
This pocket of central Calcutta has been witness to some of the biggest fires in the city in the past two decades.
“We try to create awareness among the traders on basic fire safety measures. But unfortunately, the compliance is not up to the mark. We will take action if the fire department lodges a complaint,” said a senior officer of the central division.
Not following basic fire safety norms, storing inflammable articles, narrow lanes and hanging overhead cables that are prone to catching fire are some of the reasons that make Burrabazar vulnerable to fire.
Entally fire
A fire broke out on the fourth floor of a six-storeyed residential-cum-commercial building on Girish Chandra Bose Road in Entally on Thursday afternoon. One fire tender extinguished the fire. No one was trapped or injured.