A fire broke out at a flat in Haridevpur's Diamond City South Housing Complex from a lamp around 10.30am on Sunday.
The family had gone downstairs to offer prayers on Shivratri when the curtains caught fire. Five tenders doused the flames, police said.
“Luckily, there was no one in the house when the fire broke out. We spotted thick smoke coming out of the balcony,” said Supratim Chakraborty, a resident of the housing complex on Sarat Pally, Pashchim Putiari in Haridevpur near Tollygunge.
The fire was reported from an apartment on the fifth floor of Tower II of the housing complex. The complex comprises 673 apartments.
“The family rushed back to their flat after the fire was spotted. By then, the fire had spread across the room where the earthen diya was kept,” Chakraborty added.
Initially, the complex's support staff tried to douse the fire with extinguishers. Shortly, five fire tenders arrived and doused the flames by 12.30pm.
Several residents said the society has “an adequate number of fire extinguishers.”
“By the time we reached the spot, the fire was already under control but not completely extinguished. Our biggest challenge was to ensure that the flames do not spread to the adjoining rooms or adjoining apartments,” said afire department official.
Officers of Haridevpur police station went to the spot. “The fire was reported around 10.30am and doused completely by 12.30pm. No complaint has been filed,” said an officer.
One of the complex's board members said that apart from fire extinguishers, all the floors were fitted with water sprinklers and had hose pipes attached.
“Our fire license was valid till 2025. We have recently carried out the fire assessment based on which the purchase order will be issued,” said the board member.
A resident of Tower II who did not wish to be named said, “One should not have left a diya unattended. It was an act of negligence. We were lucky that the fire was contained in time,” said the resident.
Four of the towers of the housing complex are at least 14 years old, while the fifth one is relatively new, sources said.
