“As per our knowledge, the building is not directly connected to Covishield manufacturing,” a fire brigade official was quoted as saying.
Pune| In a fire that tore through India’s Covid-19 vaccine producer Serum Institute of India on Thursday, at least five were killed, as per reports. The casualties were confirmed by Pune district collector Rajesh Deshmukh three hours after the fire engulfed vaccine production unit.
“Four people were evacuated from the building but when it came under control, five bodies were found by our jawans,” Pune Mayor Murlidhar Mohol told news agency ANI.
The fire was reported on the fifth floor of a new building on the Manjari campus, a fire brigade official said. “As per our knowledge, the building is not directly connected to Covishield manufacturing,” he added.
Most people were evacuated at the time the fire started, he said. “Four people were stuck when fire intensified. Three of those four people have been rescued by our team, efforts are on to safely evacuate the fourth person,” said the officer supervising the rescue operation.
The Chief Fire Officer with Pune City Fire Brigade, Prashant Ranpise said: “We received calls about a fire at a unit of Serum Institute of India in Manjari. We have sent at least five fire tenders and additional water tankers to the spot. The calls were received around 2:30 pm, around the time when the fire was reported. Some of the tenders have reached the area and have started the operation. As of now, we do not have details about the nature of fire, the extent of damage or the cause. Our priority will be to bring the fire under control and avert any damages of casualties.”
“Because there is a lot of smoke emanating from the affected area, it becomes difficult to locate the source of the fire and bring it under control. We have now deployed a total 10 fire tenders, a hydraulic lift and other equipment. Our teams are also checking whether any more persons are stuck, that we don’t know of as of now,” Ranpise added.
One of two vaccines approved for the emergency use in India, Covishield, is manufacture by the Serum Institute of India based in Pune.
As an independent media platform, we do not take advertisements from governments and corporate houses. It is you, our readers, who have supported us on our journey to do honest and unbiased journalism. Please contribute, so that we can continue to do the same in future.
