IIT Kharagpur's LBS hall catches fire; no casualties reported

NEW DELHI: A fire broke out inside the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur's Lal Bahadur Sashtri Hall today, July 2. According to ETV Bharat, the fire broke out in the early hours of the morning between 3 AM to 3.30 AM. However, no loss of life was reported.

As firefighters promptly responded to the incident and managed to extinguish the blaze after an hour-long effort. Two fire tenders were deployed to combat the flames and prevent further damage. The fire is suspected to have been caused by a short circuit, but the authorities have initiated an investigation to determine the exact cause of the incident, as per ETV Bharat.

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The Lal Bahadur Shastri Hall is a storage space for the belongings of new students at the institute. A disastrous event was prevented because many of the residents were away on vacation.

VIDEO | A fire broke out at the common room of IIT Kharagpur's LBS Hall earlier today. pic.twitter.com/4byix1gZnM

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 2, 2023

Earlier in 2022, IIT Kharagpur experienced similar incidents. Back then the fire broke out at Tech Market on the campus, and it took two fire tenders two hours to extinguish the blaze. Fortunately, there were no casualties reported, but the incident raised concerns about the effectiveness of the institute's fire safety measures.

At the time of the fire, all the shops in the market were closed. The authorities handling of the situation came under scrutiny, as students and occupants accused them of inadequate fire safety management. The authorities attributed the incident to a short circuit.

(With inputs from PTI)