Tornado rips through Pfizer's N.C. site, threatening essential drug supplies
Extensive damage has occurred to company property in Rocky Mount, and many products used by hospitals appear to have been affected. This could make shortages even worse.
A Pfizer facility and several homes sustained major damage when a tornado ripped through a 16-mile strip of Rocky Mount, N.C.CreditCredit...By The Associated PressA tornado caused major damage to a Pfizer drug manufacturing site in Rocky Mount , N.C., on Wednesday, threatening critical supplies for hospitals across the country.
The company estimated that a quarter of the injectable drugs it supplies to U.S. hospitals were manufactured on Rocky Mount property, including drugs used in surgeries and other procedures to help block pain, keep patients sedated, and fight infections.
Although the company has not yet disclosed the extent of the storm's impact, Video footage from the site and interviews with the Nash County Sheriff and people briefed on the damage indicated that the tornado caused the worst damage to the company's warehouse.
On Thursday, Pfizer declined to comment on the drugs affected or the proportion of its supply destroyed in the tornado, which could be significant given that many of these drugs required careful production and handling to ensure sterility.
It was also unclear to what extent the destruction would worsen existing national drug shortages, which have reached a 10-year high in recent months. Hospitals are on high alert as low-cost generic products made on site, such as the sedative propofol, are already among the most shortage-prone on the market.
"From a healthcare professional's perspective, I'm just holding my breath," said Michael Ganio, senior director of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.
The tornado moved through a 16-mile swath of the Rocky Mount area, about 50 miles east of Raleigh, around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday. It snapped trees at the base and threw homes 20 yards from their foundations, according to a National Weather Service summary. The tornado reached wind speeds of up to 150 miles per hour before ripping large chunks off the metal roof of a Pfizer building and overturning large trucks in the parking lot. Sixteen people were injured, but no fatalities were reported.
Several people said the tornado caused the most damage to a company warehouse; The impact on the manufacturing plant — and its ability to continue producing drugs — is not yet clear, according to Mittal Sutaria, senior vice president of pharmacy contracts at Vizient, which provides drug contracts for hospitals. mc1 evys1bk0"> dr. Sutaria, who said Vizient has been in contact with Pfizer, added that the Rocky Mount site manufactures anesthesia products, including propofol, which is used to sedate patients during surgery, as well as fentanyl and morphine, which are used in IVs for pain management. It also manufactures vancomycin, an antibiotic given to fight serious infections, and blockers. muscle builders, including succinylcholine, also used in surgery.
Keith Stone, the sheriff of Nash County, where Rocky Mount is located, told local news r...
Extensive damage has occurred to company property in Rocky Mount, and many products used by hospitals appear to have been affected. This could make shortages even worse.
A Pfizer facility and several homes sustained major damage when a tornado ripped through a 16-mile strip of Rocky Mount, N.C.CreditCredit...By The Associated PressA tornado caused major damage to a Pfizer drug manufacturing site in Rocky Mount , N.C., on Wednesday, threatening critical supplies for hospitals across the country.
The company estimated that a quarter of the injectable drugs it supplies to U.S. hospitals were manufactured on Rocky Mount property, including drugs used in surgeries and other procedures to help block pain, keep patients sedated, and fight infections.
Although the company has not yet disclosed the extent of the storm's impact, Video footage from the site and interviews with the Nash County Sheriff and people briefed on the damage indicated that the tornado caused the worst damage to the company's warehouse.
On Thursday, Pfizer declined to comment on the drugs affected or the proportion of its supply destroyed in the tornado, which could be significant given that many of these drugs required careful production and handling to ensure sterility.
It was also unclear to what extent the destruction would worsen existing national drug shortages, which have reached a 10-year high in recent months. Hospitals are on high alert as low-cost generic products made on site, such as the sedative propofol, are already among the most shortage-prone on the market.
"From a healthcare professional's perspective, I'm just holding my breath," said Michael Ganio, senior director of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.
The tornado moved through a 16-mile swath of the Rocky Mount area, about 50 miles east of Raleigh, around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday. It snapped trees at the base and threw homes 20 yards from their foundations, according to a National Weather Service summary. The tornado reached wind speeds of up to 150 miles per hour before ripping large chunks off the metal roof of a Pfizer building and overturning large trucks in the parking lot. Sixteen people were injured, but no fatalities were reported.
Several people said the tornado caused the most damage to a company warehouse; The impact on the manufacturing plant — and its ability to continue producing drugs — is not yet clear, according to Mittal Sutaria, senior vice president of pharmacy contracts at Vizient, which provides drug contracts for hospitals. mc1 evys1bk0"> dr. Sutaria, who said Vizient has been in contact with Pfizer, added that the Rocky Mount site manufactures anesthesia products, including propofol, which is used to sedate patients during surgery, as well as fentanyl and morphine, which are used in IVs for pain management. It also manufactures vancomycin, an antibiotic given to fight serious infections, and blockers. muscle builders, including succinylcholine, also used in surgery.
Keith Stone, the sheriff of Nash County, where Rocky Mount is located, told local news r...
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