3 shops gutted as 22-storey building catches fire

Three shops were gutted in a fire at the 22-storey building of Biswas Builders in the capital's New Market area last night.

The fire broke out around 10:50pm at the commercial-cum residential building. Firefighters were able to douse the fire around midnight, said Abdul Halim, deputy assistant director of fire service and civil defence.

No casualty was reported as of 12:45am today, he said, adding that seven units of fire service rushed to the spot and were successful in dousing the flame.

Halim said hundreds of residents from the building went down after they saw smoke.

The origin of the fire could not be known immediately.