Tornado damage to Pfizer factory highlights vulnerabilities of drug supply
A tornado that ripped through a Pfizer plant in Rocky Mount, N.C., raised worries about shortages of medicines used in hospitals. The drugs include commonly used painkillers and anesthetics.
The extent of damage from a tornado that struck a critical Pfizer factory in Rocky Mount, N.C., is now coming into focus.
The first images after the tornado hit it on July 19 showed a roof that was mangled and torn off. The facility makes dozens of medicines used in hospitals across the United States.
Hospitals panicked.
"Every hospital buyer across the country, the second they heard about that tornado, everyone was just, like, 'Buy, buy, buy, buy, buy!'" says Erin Fox, a pharmacy director
