Fire at Serum Institute of India Updates: Deputy CM Ajit Pawar visits facility, says fire audit to be conducted tomorrow

Ajit Pawar visits SII

Pained at loss of lives in Serum Institute fire, says Fadnavis

BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis onThursday expressed grief over the death of five people in a fire in the premises of Pune-based vaccine manufacturer Serum

Institute of India (SII). The Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly said he is relieved that no loss of Covishield, the vaccine

against COVID-19 manufactured by SII, was caused in the blaze. Fadnavis said, “I am pained to know that five people lost their life in the Serum I nstitute of India fire incident. My deepest condolences to their families. Praying for speedy recovery of the injured ones.”

The former chief minister further said, There is also some relief that COVID-19 vaccine produced by SII was not stored at the building that caught fire.

PTI

Extremely saddened, says Balasaheb Thorat

Maharashtra Congress president Balasaheb Thorat said he was extremely saddened to hear about the tragic fire and casualties at Serum Insitute of India in Pune and extended condolences to the families of the deceased. Five contractual workers were charred to death in the fire that broke out in an under-construction building on Thursday afternoon.

Sharad Pawar extends condolences

Taking to Twitter, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said the news of the fire at Serum Insitute of India in Pune is very tragic and unfortunate. “My condolences to families of those who lost their loved ones. I wish speedy recovery to the injured,” Pawar said.

Second minor fire broke out at 3rd floor, says report

As per The Hindu, a second, relatively minor blaze, erupted at around 7 pm on the third floor of the same building. Both fires were brought under control by evening, said fire department authorities.

Fire broke out at 4th and 5th floor of building

Deputy Commissioner of Police Namrata Patil told PTI the main fire broke out at 2.45 pm on the fourth and fifth floor of the SEZ 3 building in the Serum Institute premises.

Rahul Gandhi condoles loss of lives in SII fire

Loss of lives distressing, tweets Ram Nath Kovind

Serum to give Rs 25 lakh each to families of deceased

In a statement, SII’s Chairman and MD Cyrus Poonawalla said " We are deeply saddened and offer our condolences to the families of the departed." He said Rs 25 lakh compensation will be given to each family in addition to the amount mandated as per norms.

Narendra Modi condoles loss of lives in SII fire

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was anguished by the loss of lives due to the fire at the Serum Insititue of India facility in Pune. “In this sad hour, my thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives. I pray that those injured recover at the earliest,” he said on Twitter.  Five persons dies in the fire mishap.

Fire breaks out again

According to reports , a fire has again broken out on the sixth floor the same building at Serum Institute of India’s Pune campus where a fire was reported earlier. Fire fighting operations are underway once again.

Names of the deceased

As per News18 , the five persons who were killed in the fire at the SII plant in Pune have been identified as  Rama Shankar from Uttar Pradesh, Bipin Saroj, from Uttar Pradesh, Sushil Kumar Pandey, from Bihar, Mahendra Ingle and Pratik Pashte, from Pune

Uddhav Thackeray to inspect fire site at SII tomorrow

Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray will visit Pune on Friday, 22 January and inspect the site of the fire at Serum Insititute of India’s plant, tweeted the Chief Minister’s Office.

Anguished to learn about loss of lives in fire, tweets Harsh Vardhan

Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan said he was anguished to learn about the “unfortunate news of loss of lives due to the fire break out at Serum Insitute of India’s facility in Pune. He also appreciated the efforts of the Pune Polcie and the Fire Department to bring the fire under control.

Fire in department that develops BCG vaccine, says Uddhav Thackeray

In a press conference on the fire at the Serum Insitute of India, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray said “Reports says that the fire had not broken out in the section developing the COVID vaccine. The fire was in the department that develops the BCG vaccine. Now, the situation is under control.” Thackeray said that according to the preliminary information fire occurred due to an electric fault during the on-going construction works. " The Fire Brigade personnels have worked on a war footing to bring the fire under control," he added.

Pune Mayor Murlidhar Mohol’s statement

Speaking to reporters, Pune Mayor Murlidhar Mohol confimed that five persons were killed in the fire which broke out on Thursday afternoon at the Serum Institute of India plant in the city.

Five bodies recovered, say fire officials

Five charred bodies were recovered from Serum Institute of India building where fire broke out in afternoon, confirm fire officials.

PTI

Deeply saddened, tweets Adar Poonawalla

Five dead in blaze, says Rajesh Tope

As per The HIndu , Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope said five persons have lost their lives in the fire which erupted at SII’s Pune plant. Pune Mayor Murlidhar Mohol told News-18 Lokmat said the entire sixth floor of the building burnt down and when asked if the deceased were labourers, he said there was a possibility but added that confirmation was awaited. Both said that the fire has been borught under control

Fire under control, says Pune’s Chief Fire Officer

As per reports, the fire at SII’s facility in Pune’s Manjari area has been brought under control and cooling operations are underway.  Prashant Ranpise, the Chief Fire Officer with Pune City Fire Brigade told the Indian Express that the fire was brought under control at 4.15 pm. “Cooling operation, in which water is used to reduce the increased temperature of the premises, is currently on,” he said, adding that a total of nine people who were trapped have been rescued.

Adar Poonawalla says ’no loss’ of Covishield doses in fire

SII CEO Adar Poonawalla said that there would be “no loss” of the production of Covishield vaccine doses in the fire that broke out at the facility on Thursday.

Maharashtra govt orders probe into SII fire

Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar has directed Pune authorities to conduct an in-depth probe of the fire that broke out at the Serum Institute of India (SII) on Thursday. CNN-News18 reported that the investigative team is likely to be headed by the Pune district collector. 

The report also said that the fire has attracted international attention since the SII is manufacturing COVID-19 vaccines for companies around the world.

Fire cause of concern but Covishield production unlikely to be impacted, says Dy CM

As per reports , Maharashtra Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar is going to Pune to take stock of the situation. According to the New Indian Express , Pawar who is the guardian minister of Pune district, said that the fire at SII is cause of concern but added that he was told that the production of Covishield is not likely to be affected. “The inquiry of this incident will be done. Right now, we have to control the spread of fire,” the report quoted him as aying.

No casualties or major injuries, says Adar Poonawalla

Serum Institute of India CEO Adar Poonawalla tweeted"  So far the most important thing is that there have been no lives lost or major injuries due to the fire, despite a few floors being destroyed." He also thanked everyone for their prayers and concerns. A fire had broken out the Serum Insitute of India on Thursday afternoon and officials said three persons have been evacuated so far.

Ten fire tenders deployed, says fire brigade official

Prashant Ranpise, the Chief Fire Officer with Pune City Fire Brigade told The Indian Express that the fire call was received around 2.30 and the details about the nature of fire, the extent of damage or the cause are not yet known.

“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," the official said. Ranpise added that search was also on to check whether any more people are trapped.

Uddhav Thackeray in touch with Pune Municipal Commissioner

Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray is in touch with the Pune Municipal Commissioner and is taking complete on-ground updates. He has directed the state machinery to coordinate and ensure that the situation is under control, tweeted the Chief Minister’s Office.

Three evacuated so far

Three persons were evacuated from a building  in the premises after a fire broke out there on Thursday,  PTI quotes police as saying. Deputy Commissioner of Police Namrata Patil told PTI the fire broke out at 2.45 pm on the fourth and fifth floor of the SEZ 3 building in the Serum Institute premises.“As per the primary information, three people have been evacuated,” she said.

Fire broke out at under-construction building in Manjari

As per the latest information, the blaze has occured at an under-contruction building of the SII in Manjari area of Pune. The fourth and fifth floors of SEZ3 building inside Terminal Gate 1 of Serum Institute of India is affected by the fire. 

Fire breaks out at Serum Institute of India’s Pune facility

A major fire broke out at the Serum Institute of India’s Pune facility on Thursday, reports said. At least 10 fire tenders have been rushed to the spot. SII has been in news recently because it is one of the two vaccine manufacturers for the COVID-19 pandemic, whose product is in circulation under the ongoing inoculation drive. The vaccine manufacturing facility is also in the same premise, reportedly. 

This is a developing story. Watch this space for latest updates.