US - Drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline shuts down North Carolina plant over Legionnaires' bacteria

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Drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline shuts down North Carolina plant over Legionnaires' bacteria

Published August 12, 2015 Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. ? Drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline shut down a plant Tuesday that produces inhaled medications after discovering the bacteria that causes Legionnaire's disease, a potentially fatal form of pneumonia.

The manufacturing plant in Zebulon, about 25 miles east of Raleigh, was closed after routine testing found the bacteria in a self-standing cooling tower. About 400 of the 850 employees who work in Zebulon were told to stay away until the towers are cleaned, officials for the London-based company said.

The company said in a statement that the cooling tower "does not come into contact with product manufactured at the facility." Glaxo did not respond to questions about whether there was any risk of indoor exposure to employees or medicines from water droplets that could carry the bacteria.

"We are trying to gather information on what the situation is," spokeswoman Jenni Brewer Ligday said.
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http://www.foxnews.com/health/2015/...-down-north-carolina-plant-over-legionnaires/

 

[Emily]

March 29, 2014
[h=1]GSK ramps up hiring in Zebulon[/h] ...
Last week, the plant started manufacturing the Ellipta discus, the next generation of inhaler medical devices. The Food and Drug Administration approved two new drugs, Breo and Anoro, late last year to provide a once daily treatment for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The Ellipta device is similar to Advair, GSK?s blockbuster asthma inhaler (packaged in a purple disk), which combines two inhaled drugs and is also made in Zebulon. Though the Zebulon plant is the epicenter of GSK?s respiratory work, it also packages and produces 20 different brands and products, including drugs such as Potiga, Valtrex and Lamictal.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/article9107909.html