Serum Institute of India: 5 people die in fire at the factory of the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer

Serum Institute of India: 5 people die in fire at the factory of the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer

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According to Murlidhar Mohol, the mayor of the city, the fire was brought under control at the Serum Institute of India (SII) in the western city of Pune, although the cause is still being investigated.

Four people were rescued from the six-story building, but five others were killed, Mohol said. They were presumably construction workers, as the building was still under construction at the time of the fire.

Videos and images show black smoke from the building at the complex. Fifteen units of the municipal corporation and fire department worked to put out the fire, Mohol said.

Preliminary investigations indicate that a number of welds during the construction of the building could lead to the fire, ‘he added.

Pune fire chief Prashant Ranpise said on Friday the fire broke out on the second floor. While firefighters worked to extinguish the flames, the fire broke out elsewhere. The second fire was extinguished at 16:15 local time by 50 firefighters and staff. Ranpise said they were still investigating the cause of the fire.

“We have learned that there was an unfortunate danger to life during the incident. We are deeply saddened and express our deepest condolences to the families of the deceased,” SII CEO Adar Poonawalla tweeted on Thursday.

SII, the largest vaccine manufacturer in the world, is partnering with the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca to manufacture the Covishield vaccine. In December, the company said it was producing 50 to 60 million doses of Covishield per month, and production would be boosted to 100 million doses in January or February.
India launches one of the world's most ambitious vaccines after emergency clearance

A family business started 50 years ago by the father of Poonawalla to bring cheaper vaccines to the masses, the Serum Institute of India aims to produce hundreds of millions of coronavirus vaccines for not only India but also other developing countries .

In a tweet, Poonawalla said the production of the Covishield vaccine, although some floors would be destroyed, would not be affected.

“I want to assure all governments and the public that there will be no loss of production of COVISHIELD due to various production buildings I have kept in reserve to deal with such contingencies,” he said.

Cyrus S. Poonawalla, SII’s Chairman and Managing Director, said in a statement that the fire broke out at a facility that was under congestion in the Special Economic Zone in Manjri. He said it was an “extremely sad day” and that the company would offer INR 2.5 million ($ 34,000) to each of the victims’ families.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday tweeted his condolences: “Suffering from the loss of life due to an unfortunate fire … In this sad hour I think of the families of those who lost their lives. I pray that the injured recover at the earliest. “

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