| New York Times | - |
GlaxoSmithKline
temporarily shut down a major pharmaceutical manufacturing plant in
North Carolina on Tuesday after the bacterium that causes Legionnaires'
disease was discovered in a cooling tower.
GlaxoSmithKline
temporarily shut down a major pharmaceutical manufacturing plant in
North Carolina on Tuesday after the bacterium that causes Legionnaires’
disease was discovered in a cooling tower.
There
was no immediate indication that anybody had become sick or that any
products made at the factory had been contaminated with the bacteria.
“G.S.K.
is taking these precautions to ensure the health and safety of our
employees as well as the safety and integrity of our products,” the
company said in a statement.
A
spokeswoman for the company said that the cooling tower was a
stand-alone structure and that the air and water from it did not enter
the factory or come into contact with the products made there.
The
factory, in the Research Triangle town of Zebulon, is one of Glaxo’s
most important plants, making products that include the inhaled
respiratory drugs Advair and Breo Ellipta, as well as various pills. It
employs about 850 people, the spokeswoman, Marti Skold Jordan, said.
However,
there are three separate clusters of buildings on the site and only one
was closed, Ms. Jordan said. The buildings where the respiratory
products are made were not closed. She said she did not know which
products were made in the part of the facility that was shut but added
that the company did not anticipate there would be any product
shortages.
Glaxo
said the Legionella bacteria were discovered during a routine
inspection. Employees were sent home and those scheduled to come to work
were told to stay away until further notice.
It
said the cooling tower would be cleaned and inspected before operations
at the plant resumed. It did not say how long that would take.
City,
state and federal officials, including the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, generally referred inquiries to GlaxoSmithKline. The
Food and Drug Administration said it was monitoring the situation, but
also referred questions to the company.
At
least 113 people have been sickened and 12 have died from Legionnaires’
disease in the Bronx since early July. New York City health authorities
think that case was linked to a cooling tower as well.
People can become sick from breathing the bacteria in a mist. The disease is not thought to spread from one person to another.
Robert
S. Matheny, the mayor of Zebulon, said in an email that the town had
not been advised of any threat to the public. He said the tower used
reclaimed water, which is separate from drinking water.
The
North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services said it was not
aware of any Legionnaires’ cases associated with the facility, according
to a spokeswoman.
In
2010, Glaxo paid $750 million to settle criminal and civil complaints
related to manufacturing problems at a factory in Puerto Rico.
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