Fire outbreak at vaccine factory in India
A fire has broken out at a production facility belonging to the world’s largest vaccine producer, the Serum Institute of India.
The company’s top brass have said COVID vaccine production isn’t impacted.
On Thursday afternoon, emergency services were called to a plant belonging to the Serum Institute of India (SII) in Pune, India, after a fire broke out of the fifth floor of the facility.
The company’s Executive Director, Suresh Jadhav, confirmed that the facility in question was used for the production of a BCG vaccine, a jab primarily used against tuberculosis.
The SII is the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer and is currently mass producing AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 jab, Covishield.
Jadhav confirmed that the facility where the Covishield vaccine is manufactured is far away from the fire.
The Mayor of Pune’s, Murlidhar Mohol, said a call had been received at 2.50pm local time (09:20 GMT) alerting authorities to the fire. He said ten fire engines and at least two extra tankers were rushed to the incident.
