Fire Guts Kozhikode Textile Showroom, 50 Crore Loss

A major fire ravaged a prominent textile showroom near the Kozhikode railway station in Kerala on Tuesday evening, destroying goods estimated at 50 crore rupees and marking the second such incident at the site within two years.

The blaze erupted around 6 p.m. at the three-story Jayalakshmi Silks building in the bustling Palayam area, quickly spreading from a storage room on one of the lower levels to the upper floors. Showroom owner Govind Kamat stated that the fire originated in a room holding additional stock, where it went undetected initially. "By the time staff traced the smoke to that room, the fire had spread and could not be controlled," Kamat said. He suspects a short circuit as the cause, though investigations are ongoing. Fire officials confirmed the flames intensified rapidly, with thick smoke billowing out and intense heat causing glass panes to shatter, which complicated initial firefighting efforts.

Emergency responders acted swiftly upon reports of the fire. Fire and rescue teams from Meenchanda, Beach, and Vellimadukunnu stations deployed multiple tenders to the scene, battling the flames for several hours before bringing it under control late Tuesday night....