Bengaluru:Five persons were charred to death after a fire broke out in a bar-cum-restaurant in Kalasiplaya near KR Market in the early hours on Monday. The exact cause for the fire is yet to be ascertained.

The deceased identified as Swami (23), Prasad (20), Mahesh (35), all natives of Tumakur, Manjunath (45) of Hassan and Keerthi (24) of Mandya, were residing in the bar. 

​A senior police officer said that the fire broke out at Kailash bar and restaurant located in the ground floor of Kumbaara Sangha building. Passersby noticed thick smoke and alerted the fire department. Two fire tenders along with a fire rescue vehicle began the dousing operations. It took them three-and-a-half hours to completely douse off the fire. The cause of the fire is unknown and Kalasipalya police are investigating the case. 

"The bar licence is in the name of V R Dayashankar and we are yet to ascertain who was taking care of maintenance. No fire safety measures were installed at the bar premises,” the officer added.

Selvakumar, a vegetable vendor in the market, noticed the mishap and alerted the fire services. 

"A boy started screaming outside the bar and I went to see what happened. Heavy smoke was coming from the bar and employees were inside. Before I called fire service the fire spread all over the counter due to liquor bottles stocked nearby cash counter. As the employees were locked from the inside they were not able to reach the door. All were burnt alive while shouting for help. Police rushed to spot and dispersed the crowd,” said Selvakumar.