Fire breaks out at Serum Institute of India,5 people died

 A major fire broke out at the Pune-based vaccine manufacturing company, Serum Institute of India on Thursday afternoon between 2.30 pm and 3 pm. A total of 10 fire tenders were rushed to the site to douse the fire. The site where the fire broke out, is an under-construction building at Serum Institute of India.

The company is involved in producing Covid-19 vaccine Covishield – developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca – which has been given emergency use authorisation in India recently and is being used for inoculation in the country's mega vaccination drive.

At least five persons died and four others were evacuated. "The five people who died, were perhaps the workers at the under-construction building. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained but it is being speculated that welding, that was going on at the building, caused the fire" ,said Pune Mayor Murlidhar Mohol.

The five people who died, were perhaps the workers at the under-construction building. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained but it is being speculated that welding, that was going on at the building, caused the fire: Pune Mayor Murlidhar Mohol#SerumInstituteofIndia https://t.co/KmSngS3TI6

— ANI (@ANI) January 21, 2021

“The fire was brought under control at 4.15 pm. Cooling operations, in which water is used to reduce the increased temperature on the premises, are currently on. A total of nine people who were trapped have been rescued” ,Prashant Ranpise, the Chief Fire Officer with Pune City Fire Brigade, had said earlier.

A fire brigade official said the fire was reported on the fifth floor of the new building on the Manjari campus. “As per our knowledge, the building is not directly connected to Covishield manufacturing,” he said.

Manjari, the complex where the fire broke out, is a few minutes' drive from the facility where the Covid vaccines are produced. It is believed to be part of a Special Economic Zone (SEZ).About eight or nine buildings are being constructed at the Manjari complex to deal with future pandemics and these are aimed at enhancing the SII's manufacturing capability.

Adar Poonawalla, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Serum Institute of India, took to Twitter to share the tragic news. "We have just received some distressing updates; upon further investigation we have learnt that there has unfortunately been some loss of life at the incident. We are deeply saddened and offer our deepest condolences to the family members of the departed",tweeted Poonawalla.

We have just received some distressing updates; upon further investigation we have learnt that there has unfortunately been some loss of life at the incident. We are deeply saddened and offer our deepest condolences to the family members of the departed.

— Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) January 21, 2021

Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar said shortly after the devastating fire that the directives have been issued for a detailed probe into the incident. He also said that the plant where the Covid-19 vaccine is being manufactured is safe.

“Directives have been issued to the Pune police commissioner for detailed investigation into the incident” ,Pawar said in a statement.

 “People in the country and abroad have expressed concerns over the incident. I would like to clarify that I have been told that the plant where Covid-19 vaccine is being manufactured is safe. At present, our focus is to douse the fire and minimize the damage caused” ,he said.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray told reporters that as per initial information, an electrical fault caused the fire.“As per initial information, the fire did not erupt at the unit where the COVID-19 vaccine is being produced, but in the unit where the BCG vaccine is produced” ,Thackeray said.

The Serum Institute of India Pvt Ltd was founded by Cyrus Poonawalla in 1966.

 Serum Institute of India Pvt Ltd is presently the world's largest vaccine manufacturer "by the number of doses produced and sold globally (more than 1.5 billion doses)".It is estimated that approximately 65 per cent of the children in the world receive at least one vaccine manufactured by Serum Institute.