5 Dead in Serum Institute of India Fire
On Thursday 21st January 2021 afternoon fire broke out at 2 places in an under construction building of Serum Institute of India (SII) in Pune’s Manjari area. 5 workers died in the fire.
On Thursday 21st January 2021 afternoon fire broke out at 2 places in an under construction building of Serum Institute of India (SII) in Pune’s Manjari area. The first blaze apparently caused by an electrical fault, erupted around 2 p.m on the fifth floor of the under construction building. The second, a minor blaze, occurred at 7 p.m. on the third floor of the same building.
Five labourers were charred (burnt) to death in the fire. The five deceased were contractual labourers- two hailing from Uttar Pradesh, two from Pune district and one from Bihar. According to sources, four others were evacuated from the building when the first blaze started. Fire department authorities said that the fires have been brought under control.
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope said the fire had not harmed SII’s ‘Covishield’ vaccine storage as it is stored at another place which is at a distance from the blaze. He added, “The fire was caused when a spark during welding fell on inflammable material, which further aggravated the fire. At least five fire tenders and three water tankers were rushed to the spot. It took around two-three hours to douse the fire. After the fire was finally extinguished, five bodies were found inside the building by the authorities.”
The Chief Minister’s Office said that Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray spoke with SII CEO Adar Poonawalla and would visit the SII unit in Manjri on 22nd January.
Cyrus S. Poonawalla, Chairman and Managing Director, SII, said they would offer a compensation of ?25 lakh to each of the families of the deceased, in addition to the mandated amount as per the norms. In a tweet, Mr. Poonawalla, thanked the police and fire-fighting personnel and reassured all governments and the public that there would be no loss in the ‘Covishield’ production as there were multiple production buildings that had been kept in reserve to deal with such contingencies at the Manjari complex.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, visited the accident spot later in the evening, and directed an immediate investigation into the cause of the fire.
