Five dead in fire in Serum Institute in Pune; Covishield facility not affected, cause of fire not yet known

Five charred bodies have been recovered from the fire that engulfed the Serum Institute of India building in Pune where COVID-19 vaccine is being made.

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 was quoted as saying by the news agency ANI.

Earlier, four persons were evacuated from a building in the Serum Institute of India's Manjari premises after a fire broke out on Thursday, police said.

There is no impact on the Covishield vaccine making process as the fire broke out in a facility away from the place where the anti-coronavirus vaccines are made, sources said.

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.

Viral visuals from the site showed smoke billowing out from the Serum Institute facility.

"We have sent water tenders to the spot," a fire brigade official said, adding the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.

The Manjari facility is where the Covishield vaccine used in the nationwide inoculation drive against the pandemic is made.

The building where the fire broke out is part of the under-construction site of the Serum facility and Covishield production has not been affected by the fire, sources said.

With PTI inputs