KOLKATA: According to unconfirmed sources, seven charred bodies have been recovered, and around 20 people are still feared trapped in the debris after a massive fire gutted a godown storing inflammable material like gas cylinders, dry food, and cold drink bottles in the eastern fringe of Kolkata.
Official sources confirmed that three people had been charred to death.
Twelve firefighting engines have been pressed into service to douse the blaze, according to sources in the fire brigade services.
Subhendra Kumar, police superintendent of Baruipur district in South 24 Parganas district, said that three persons were charred to death in the fire that gutted the godown completely.
Sources said that the fire was spotted at the godown storing combustible material like packaged dry food items, cold drink bottles and gas cylinders at Nazirabad under Anandapur police station around 3 am today.
There was also a Momo manufacturing unit of a branded company inside the godown.
Locals saw the blaze first at midnight and informed the nearby fire services station at a time when the fire spread rapidly.
The family members tried to call the missing persons, but they could not be reached.
Fire brigade men said that it was very difficult to douse the flame because their engines could not reach the narrow lane immediately, where the godown is located.
As a result, fire tenders could not lay water pipelines to the engulfed godown to douse the flames. Thick smoke billowed from the gutted storehouse, though the blaze was brought under control after 10 hours.
Interestingly, state Fire Minister Sujit Bose did not visit the spot, while Sports Minister Arup Biswas went to the site.
The cause of the fire has not yet been ascertained, the fire brigade personnel who were supervising the operation on the spot said.