Four thatched houses and three adjacent commercial establishments were gutted in a fire that broke out in the city's Hazaribagh area in the early hours of Thursday.

Fortunately, no casualties were reported.

The blaze began around 3am in one of the houses in Jhauchar Beribadh and soon engulfed two houses, a rickshaw garage, a hotel and a metal scrap shop in the vicinity, said Ershad Hossain, duty officer at Fire Service and Civil Defense Control Room.

As many as six fire tenders were pressed into service and the blaze was contained around 3.45 am. "The fire was fully doused around 4.30am," he added.

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Fire officials suspect that an electrical short-circuit triggered the fire. "Anyway, a probe has been ordered to ascertain the exact cause of the fire and the extent of damage," the officer said.

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