Fire Breaks Out At Old Central Theatre Near Madurai Meenakshi Temple

A major fire broke out at the old Central Theatre complex near the Meenakshi Amman Temple in Madurai this evening, sending thick smoke into the air as fire and rescue personnel worked to bring the flames under control.

Visuals from the spot showed flames rising from the building and smoke billowing from the premises.

A senior Fire and Rescue Services officer told NDTV that the fire had been contained within the building and had not spread to neighbouring structures.

"The fire has been contained in the building. It's not spreading to adjacent buildings. We will extinguish it soon," the officer said, adding that 15 fire tenders had been deployed for the operation.

A senior police officer told NDTV that there were no casualties in the incident and that no one had been injured.

"Fortunately, we had three fire tenders in the vicinity and hence the firefighting operation began swiftly," the officer said.

The Central Theatre is one of the older theatre complexes in Madurai and is located close to the western tower of the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple. The theatre has remained closed for film screenings since the COVID period, according to local reports.

After the theatre ceased operations, the premises were being used for other purposes, including as a storage facility for toys and other plastic articles.

The presence of combustible materials inside the premises may have contributed to the spread of flames within the building, but the exact cause of the fire has not yet been established.

The fire incident comes as preparations are underway for the consecration of the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple. Yagasala rituals for the consecration have begun, drawing devotees and visitors to the temple area.

The temple's western tower is around half a kilometre from the theatre complex. Despite the proximity, officials said the fire had remained contained within the theatre building and had not spread to adjacent structures.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)