One of Novo Nordisk's office buildings on the outskirts of Copenhagen, Denmark, caught fire this Wednesday. Novo Nordisk is the pharmaceutical group behind the weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy.
The Copenhagen Fire Department reported the incident. They issued an evacuation order. Fire Chief of Operations Martin Smith told AFP that they were working to control a "large" fire: "It is a large fire. We have about 100 personnel on site," said Smith.
The headquarters of the largest European company, Novo Nordisk, catches fire near Copenhagen. Novo Nordisk manufactures pharmaceutical products such as insulin and weight loss products.
Siedziba największej europejskiej firmy Novo Nordisk płonie niedaleko Kopenhagi.
Novo Nordisk produkuje farmaceutyki, w tym insulinę i produkty odchudzające. pic.twitter.com/V3bIjWcwuW
— Aneczka 🇵🇱 (@AneczkaKon69192) May 22, 2024
The fire department got the flames under control at the Novo Nordisk offices
According to the fire chief, the fire started in a container in a building that was being renovated by the pharmaceutical group. After this, it spread to the roof, making it more difficult for firefighters to control the fire. However, hours later, the authorities announced that they had managed to get the flames under control. They also managed to reduce the number of firefighters at the scene. "The fire is now under control and we have gone down to about 30 firefighters. There are only pockets of smoke left," the fire chief said.
The smoke was a cause of concern for the population. According to the Danish press agency Ritzau, smoke could be seen from nearly 20 miles away. Copenhagen Police recommended that people "go indoors and close doors and windows if you are in a smoky area," The Guardian learned. Novo Nordisk issued a statement and said the smoke "is not toxic."
It is not the first fire that the pharmaceutical group has experienced recently. Less than a week ago, another company building under construction went up in flames. The company claimed that the fire did not affect the production of medicines.
