A fire broke out in the digital X-ray wing of a building at SSKM Hospital in south-central Kolkata late on Thursday.
The wing where the fire broke out also houses the scan department and the Central Laboratory and is located close to the emergency ward. No patients or their relatives were present in the wing when the fire broke out.
Officials in the state fire and emergency services department said nine fire tenders were sent to douse the flames.
Mayor Firhad Hakim, who visited the hospital, said the fire had started from a CT scan machine.
“The CT scan machine was gutted. The fire is under control, but a lot of smoke is still coming out,” Hakim said.
The cause of the fire could be a short circuit, fire officials said.
The fire broke out close to 10 pm, following which five fire tenders were sent to the superspeciality hospital in the heart of the city. However, as thick fumes started billowing out of the windows, four more fire tenders were sent.
Patients from an adjoining block were shifted to another building.
Police said it was difficult to ascertain the extent of damage inside the hospital till the smoke cleared.
Around 11.20pm, an officer of the fire department said: “The fire has been extinguished. We are trying to cool off the area now. The extent of damage is yet to be assessed. There has been no reports of anyone being trapped or injured.
