In a city struggling to cope with a deluge, two fires broke out within 200 metres of each other at Ballygunge Place.

A grocery store at Mandeville Gardens was gutted on Tuesday morning, along with a stockbroker’s office located at the back of the store.

A few hours later, the popular Chowman restaurant down the road was gutted by a fire suspected to have started from a short circuit.

In both instances, fire brigade vehicles struggled to reach the blaze through roads deep under water. At least one fire engine broke down, and the firefighters had to travel on foot.

The morning fire was next to the popular snack joint Tasty Corner.

A resident of Mandeville Gardens said they could see the flames from their windows.

“We were two buildings away,” said Pradip Tondon, who stays at Suryalok Apartments, Mandeville Gardens.

Tondon spoke of how the calamity helped bridge many social gulfs.

“I walked through knee-deep water to the shops. There is a slum adjacent to the shops, and everyone there was panic-stricken,” said Tondon.

Approximately 25 individuals from the slum, predominantly women and children, found refuge in the Suryalok lobby. “We provided them with meals and accommodation. In the evening, the majority returned, while five women stayed the night in our lobby,” Tondon said.

He had called up Calcutta’s mayor, Firhad Hakim, who came to the spot. “The fire tenders found it difficult to come and reached around two hours after the fire started,” he said.

According to Lalan Rajak, who runs a salon next door, there was nothing amiss when the grocer opened the store around 9am. “Ganesh da came but on finding water inside, shut the shutters and left. The fire was noticed an hour later.”

The fire is believed to have originated from a refrigerator. “He had four such refrigerators. The compressor of one of them burst,” Rajak said, adding that his salon suffered as well.

“A wall on the side of the grocery store has developed cracks and is black with soot. The asbestos roof is damaged,” he said.

Bachchu, Ganesh’s brother, runs a stockbroking agency behind the grocery. All four computers there were gutted.

Two fire tenders made their way to the site. Later, they were joined by another two. It took the firemen about three hours to control the blaze. Mayor Firhad Hakim was on the spot to survey the damage.

The grocery store is extremely popular among residents of Mandeville Gardens. "Be it Amphan or the Covid period, Ganesh da is our supply line. He has been serving the neighbourhood for decades," said Sandip Biswas, who lives across the street since 1986.