PRAYAGRAJ, May 19 -- Panic spread through the Civil Lines locality on Monday afternoon after a massive fire broke out, at a four-storey city hotel near the historic Coffee House, reportedly triggered by a powerful transformer explosion around 1.30 pm, causing alarm in nearby buildings.

Chief fire officer CM Sharma informed that the fire was brought under control after sustained efforts, adding that no casualties were reported. Preliminary estimates indicate property losses worth several lakh rupees.

According to eyewitnesses, the transformer installed on Hotel Vitthal International's ground floor suddenly exploded with a loud blast while electricity department personnel were reportedly carrying out repair work. The impact of the explosi...