Kolkata, Dec 4 (IANS) A fire broke out at the plush South City Mall here early on Sunday. There was, however, no report of casualty, a fire department official said.
The fire started around 9 a.m. from the false ceiling of the food court on the mall building's third floor, he said.
"There was thick smoke coming out from the food court. The fire has been controlled completely. Overall, 21 fire tenders were deployed and no casualty was reported," the official said.
The fire was under control by 11.30 a.m. The cause of the fire was yet to be ascertained, he added.
"The shops were yet to open when the fire broke out. Only the morning film shows were on. Everybody has been evacuated," said West Bengal Fire and Emergency Services Minister Sovan Chatterjee.
Panic struck moviegoers and workers at the mall.
"We were working downstairs. Suddenly we heard a fire alarm but were not sure what happened. Then we were told to evacuate the mall," a worker inside the mall said.
Around the time when smoke was seen at the popular mall, none of the shops had opened and the only place where people were seen was near the movie theatre with the morning shows running.
"We saw a family of four entering the theatre for a show. All those at the movie halls were immediately evacuated after the alarm," another worker said.
"We were watching a movie and suddenly the screen turned black. We got very scared as we were asked to evacuate the place from the back door," a woman, who went to watch 'Kahaani 2', said.
