Fire in Stevenson Towers
By a Staff Reporter
Kolkata, 7th June, 2021
On the 6th of June at around 10:20 am black smoke was seen from the sixth floor of the
Stevenson Towers located near the South City Mall. The building was a ten storey building and
the fire had started in one of the apartments on the sixth floor.
It was reported that the fire was caused due to a short circuit in one of the apartments. The
apartments in Stevenson Towers had no fire safety measures as it was an old building and the
fire was caused due to that. By 10:40 am the fire had spread to the eight floor. There was a lot
of panic among the residents. Some of the residents had escaped to the roof for safety
although the elderly people living in the apartments were stuck and there was a lot of panic
among them.
The rescue operations had commenced by 10:35 am. The fire brigade were working very
effectively and they were able to rescue most of the people trapped in the building. The police
also did a great job in keeping the people out of the danger zone and providing support to the
people who had been rescued. It took the fire brigade over 6 hours to subdue the fire.
It was reported that around 8 people needed medical attention because of exposure to toxic
gases and heat. Luckily there were no casualties although 2 people were reported to be in a
critical condition due to being trapped in the heat. All the apartment in the sixth, seventh and
eighth floor has completely burned down. There has been a huge loss to property as well.
The State Government of West Bengal has stated that they will provide support to the
residents of Stevenson Tower. They have also stated that they will provide an ex - gratia
amount of 50 thousand rupees for the treatment of the people who were trapped in the
building
At the moment, investigation is being carried out as to why there were no safety measures in
the apartments for short circuits. It is also being investigated as to why there was a short
circuit in the first place. Currently the situation is now completely under control but still the
officials are not taking any chances so all the residents have been asked to move out of their
apartments. It was a very terrifying and traumatising accident for the residents of Stevenson
Tower.
