A fire at Kolkata’s Turner Morrison Building, a Grade I heritage property behind the Writers’ Buildings in Dalhousie, was brought under control late on Monday night after firefighters battled the blaze for several hours. Senior fire and emergency services officials said an electrical short circuit was suspected, but stressed that the exact cause would be established only after a forensic examination.
The fire broke out on the building’s third floor, which houses stockbroking firms, small financial and trading companies, and tea-processing units. No casualties or injuries were reported. Computers and machinery in offices on the affected floor were damaged, while the building’s ornate wooden staircase may also have suffered extensive damage.
Director-general of fire and emergency services Anurag Sharma said a report had been sought from the divisional officer to determine the cause of the fire. The department is also planning a forensic examination to identify the precise point of origin and establish how the flames spread through the building.
“Prima facie, it appears to be an electrical fire. But the exact cause can be ascertained only after the forensic report comes,” a fire department official said. Officials reiterated that the suspected short circuit had not yet been established as the definitive cause.
A forensic team is expected to visit the site to collect samples and identify the seat of the fire. The forensic findings and the divisional officer’s report will be used to reconstruct the sequence of events leading to the blaze. A senior department official said accountability, if any, would be fixed after the cause and circumstances of the fire were established.
At least 10 fire tenders were deployed during the operation. Thick black smoke emerged from the third-floor windows and spread through the surrounding neighbourhood, prompting office-goers and passers-by to cover their faces. Firefighters used aerial ladders to reach the terrace and cut openings in sections of the roof and upper-floor walls to release trapped smoke.
The building’s wooden staircase was one of the main obstacles during the firefighting operation. A senior official said the burning staircase made it difficult for personnel to access different floors and reach pockets of fire inside the property. Firefighters also had to negotiate the damaged staircase while extinguishing concealed flames.
Although the blaze was brought under control earlier, cooling operations continued until late on Monday night to ensure that no hidden pockets of fire remained. The incident has drawn attention to the operational challenges involved in responding to fires in ageing commercial buildings, particularly properties with heritage structures and combustible internal elements.
As of Tuesday evening, no formal police complaint had been lodged in connection with the incident. The next steps are the forensic inspection and submission of the divisional officer’s report, after which officials will determine the cause of the fire and whether any accountability arises.
