Bipin Ganatra at his friend’s house in Belur on Monday. Picture by Anindya Shankar Ray

The Strand Warehouse fire could have been the last for Calcutta’s voluntary fire fighter No. 1. But Bipin Ganatra was rescued from the room where he was trapped for an hour and is determined to help put out more fires.

“I thought I would die. A portion of the building collapsed on the tin roof of the room where I was working. My legs and right arm were stuck in the debris. I tried to wriggle out but could not. Police, fire services and some residents gave me a new life,” said the 52-year-old bachelor who has been helping the men in uniform for 32 years.

“I will return to my Debendra Mullick Street home tomorrow,” added Ganatra, nursing his injuries at his friend’s place in Belur.

The good Samaritan, who barely earns Rs 1,000 a month by working as an electrician, first lent a hand to firemen during a blaze in a bank in 1978 and has since been part of most major firefighting operations, including the 100-hour Nandaram Market blaze.

Injuries have been frequent in the line of “duty” but Ganatra never called it quits. “When Vedic Village was in flames, Bipin borrowed Rs 300 from friends and took a taxi to the resort,” said his friend.

A personal tragedy fuels the do-gooder’s desire to fight flames. “In 1982, my elder brother was working in his home on Diwali-eve when a cracker landed in an oil container in the room, setting it ablaze. My brother was in hospital for a month before he died,” recounted Ganatra.

“I lost my brother. But I don’t want others to lose their near ones.”

Ganatra is also driven by gratitude. “Some people came forward and funded my bypass surgery. I think it’s my duty to help some others.”

He has already helped many. “A pregnant woman was trapped on the fifth floor of 56 Canning Street when it caught fire a few years ago. I scaled the walls to the first floor and then went up the stairs and stood by her till the firemen arrived.”

That he often does not know where his next meal is coming from has not dampened the do-gooder’s zeal. When there isn’t a fire, he can be seen at the MG Road-CR Avenue crossing, helping cops manage traffic.