Blaze in illegal Indian market kills 13

A fire has swept through a six-storey building housing an illegal market in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata, killing 13 people who were unable to escape the inferno, local officials say.

A fire has swept through a six-storey building housing an illegal market in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata, killing 13 people who were unable to escape the inferno, local officials say.

"The death toll in the Surya Sen market fire has jumped to 13," state fire services minister Javed Khan told AFP on Wednesday.

"The market has only one exit point and those who stayed in the market at night were trapped after the fire broke out."