Pankaj, 27, was among the dozens of people who have been missing since the massive fire that erupted at the warehouses, which stored momos, at around 3 am Monday. According to police sources Wednesday, the death toll has risen to 19, with several people still reported missing.
Moushumi has been at the site as the police and the firefighters work their way through, hoping that she will be able to identify her husband if some remains are found.
“He had called to say that the entire godown was on fire, and there was no escape route. He said ‘just five minutes, and then we will die, take care of my daughter and yourself’. Whenever I close my eyes, I only hear this.”
‘Imagine locked inside and burning alive’
Like Moushumi, Hare Krishna Maiti has been at the site, where his brother, Shri Krishna, and nephew, Bapan, worked for close to eight years. He said he has been to the police station seeking information about them, but has not been able to trace his relatives.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Hare Krishna said, “No one is saying anything. They are just saying, ‘go to the police station and file a missing persons report.’ I know my brother and nephew are no more. I know our family will not get anything to perform their final rites. Their ashes are probably washed away in the water poured by the firefighters to douse the flames.”
“Imagine locked inside and burning alive, seeing the flames engulfing them. No one deserves such a death,” said Maiti as he broke down.
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Prasanta Haldar, a relative of Basudeb Haldar, 56, said he had called his daughter at 3 am. “He told her they were trapped inside the door was locked from the outside. ‘There is no more time’.”
Tapan Doloi, 35, a flower decorator at one of the godowns, spoke to his wife, Barnali Doloi, at 11 am on January 25. “He said they were all very tired will go to sleep. He was to come home the next day.”
Tapan was the only earning member of the family, consisting of his parents, his wife, and their five-year-old child.
‘I could feel the heat of the flames coming close’
The air still reeked of smoke, and water flowed from the two godowns as civic body workers brought down the sheds with gas cutters, and firefighters checked for pocket fires, with residents trying to take a peek into the cordoned area.
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Survivors spoke of the chaos after the fire broke out, and they scrambled to get out of the burning buildings.
“We were all very tired as there was continuous night duty from January 20. Suddenly, I heard people screaming about a fire. We were close to the front gate. I could feel the heat of the flames coming closer, and the whole place was dark. I ran towards the gate, and we managed to open it and ran for help,” Susanta Jana of Tamluk told The Indian Express
Another survivor, Bimal Bhowmick, said, “I don’t remember the exact time; it was very dark. Everyone was calling out to each other, and I suddenly fell down. I got up and ran again. But the smoke was getting heavy. I do not remember anything when I woke up in an ambulance.”
Walking through the rubble and peering into the godowns reveals the absence of basic fire safety measures: no windows, no sprinklers, no safeguards. Scattered amid the debris are mangled bicycles and motorcycles belonging to workers who had come in for duty but will never return home.
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According to residents, the area was a part of the East Kolkata wetland.
Protima Mondol, a resident, told The Indian Express that fish farming was done in the area. “Over the past 10 -12 years, these areas have been filled up, and several godowns have come up,” she added.
“Hectares of farm land, ponds and wetlands were there. Over the years, we saw the lands being filled up with sand, and then these godowns came up,” another resident, Bijoy Munda, added.
