Fire breaks out at Kolkata's Eden Gardens during renovation work ahead of 2023 ODI World Cup

A fire broke out at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Wednesday during renovation work as the venue gets ready for the ODI World Cup later this year.

Eden Gardens is scheduled to host five matches of the 2023 Cricket World Cup, that gets underway on 5 October.

The fire reportedly broke out after sparks emerged from a sauna heater and caught a stack of towels kept close by. However, the stadium staff swung into action quickly and doused the flames before much damage could be caused.

“A fire broke out last night at 11.50 pm. People who were working here saw smoke and then the fire. Immediately, two fire tenders were pressed into action and flames were doused in no time. There was no damage to the dressing room as such. Only some cables were burnt. But certainly, there is no sabotage angle,” Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president Snehasish Ganguly told reporters on Thursday.

The matches slated to be played at the Eden Gardens include a-semi-final, an event that returns to the found after 27 years; The last ODI World Cup semi-final held at the venue was the India vs Sri Lanka clash in 1996.

Although the World Cup starts on 5 October, the first match at Eden Gardens will be played only as late as 28 October between Bangladesh and Netherlands. The rest of games include the Pakistan vs Bangladesh on 30 October, India vs South Africa on 5 November, England vs Pakistan on 11 November and the second semi-final on 16 November.

The stadium is one of the venues being renovated ahead of the mega cricketing event and given that the stadium was snubbed in 2011 for the India vs England clash for not meeting ICC standards, despite a $32 million renovation, the CAB aren’t leaving any loose ends this time.

The renovations are going in full swing and the fire incident reported not have any effect on the deadline.