A fire broke out at one of the buildings of the Serum Institute of India (SII), located in the city of Pune in India.
At least five people were reported killed in the fire that destroyed a few floors of the said building.
Dr Cyrus Poonawalla, chairman and managing director of SII, called the incident “unfortunate.”
He, however, assured that this incident will have no effect on SII’s production timeline for the COVID-19 vaccine.
Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd is the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer by number of doses produced and sold around the world. It currently manufactures Covishield, the vaccine brand made in partnership with AstraZeneca and Oxford University under a license.
The other vaccine out of India is its home-grown vaccine brand called Covaxin by Bharat Biotech.
The fire broke out in a newly-constructed building inside SII, though the actual cause of the fire is still undetermined. Fire investigators noted the presence of flammable materials such as acrylic, plastic and other wood-based materials.
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