The Hindu : Front Page : Major fire in <I>The Statesman</I> building in Kolkata

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Apr 01, 2006

Front Page

Front Page

Major fire in The Statesman building in Kolkata

There was no report of any casualty

KOLKATA: A major fire broke out in the office of The Statesman in Dharmatola area here on Friday night but there was no report of any casualty.

Ten fire-tenders fought the fire for about an hour to bring it under control.

Prompt intervention

Sources said the fire, which started from the rotary room in the ground floor, did not spread wildly due to prompt intervention by fire-fighters. It was noticed at 8.25 p.m. and brought under control an hour later, the sources said. The entire building was evacuated immediately after the fire broke out.

A large posse of policemen cordoned off the entire area to facilitate smooth fire-fighting operations. The cause of the fire and the extent of damage are yet to be ascertained.

Power line cut off

The blaze fuelled by strong wind quickly spread over huge areas of the ground floor and then the first floor. Fire-fighters used ladders to reach the second floor. The power line to the entire area was cut off as a precautionary measure.

Editor of the paper Ravindra Kumar said the fire was first noticed at the southern end of the building.

Deputy Commissioner Ajay Kumar said the losses could not be estimated immediately.

West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi rushed to the spot. Newly appointed CPI (M) State Secretary Biman Bose, Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banjeree, and CPI (M) leader Mohammed Salim also reached the newspaper office. — UNI, PTI

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