Wrexham vaccine factory “secure and operating as normal” after floods as wider impact avoided

A key vaccine factory has avoided any disruption to production.

The local factory has the vital role of “fill finish” in creating Covid-19 vaccines with a range of production lines on the industrial estate.

There has been widespread concern over the factory due to the extra importance of its production.

BREAKING NEWS on @GMB re the vaccine factory based at @wrexham industrial estate!! 😷🤔💫🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 pic.twitter.com/YI7VGaZP0w

— Andy Snowden🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 (@thesnowdens) January 21, 2021

There was some ‘mild flooding’ around 4pm yesterday on the site and an emergency response was activated.

In a statement Wockhardt said, “Further to reports on flooding in the Wrexham area, Wockhardt UK also experienced mild flooding yesterday. All necessary actions were taken with no disruption to manufacturing. We would like to reassure everyone that the site is secure and operating as normal.”

Wrexham Council Leader Mark Pritchard has appeared on a range of media this morning to offer reassurance, saying to BBC Wales earlier: “It is fine just for clarity.

“There was problems there, and we were asked for help and assistance. We didn’t hesitate, we helped them, we have resources and pumps brought in, and we’ve worked with them and that’s been successful.”

“That could have had an impact not just in North Wales but across the United Kingdom and further afield, so I’m really pleased with that. That’s that is working in true partnership with a company and ourselves.”

Mr Pritchard was also on Sky News this morning:

Mark Pritchard, the leader of Wrexham Council, says emergency services have been working "tirelessly through the night". He adds that 20 to 30 senior citizens had been evacuated and taken to temporary accommodation.

Read the latest here: https://t.co/VUBM0JeAp3 pic.twitter.com/n4KSxbgaby

— Sky News (@SkyNews) January 21, 2021

Last year the UK Government entered into an 18-month agreement with the global pharmaceutical and biotechnology company to carry out the crucial ‘fill and finish’ stage of the manufacturing process, which involves dispensing the manufactured vaccine substance into vials ready for it to be distributed globally.