COVID-19 Vaccine Transport Operation... Unexpected Situations Like Boxes Freezing

Due to dry ice, the paper box inside the portable container got stuck.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] At 1:57 PM on the 3rd, a COVID-19 vaccine transport vehicle, preceded by a police car, entered the Central Vaccination Center installed at the National Medical Center under tight security. A simulation drill was held to transport vaccines from a logistics center in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, to the National Medical Center vaccination center. The white 1-ton truck bore the phrase, "COVID-19 cannot defeat Korea!"

Shortly after, the vaccine transport vehicle stopped inside the Central Vaccination Center, and two soldiers opened the cargo compartment and unloaded a black box measuring 60 cm containing the vaccines. The box was then moved to the nearby yellow Building D and taken to a room equipped with two freezers.

When the military placed the black box on the desk, medical staff in white coats recorded the details in a ledger and opened the box. The thermometer attached inside the box showed minus 75 degrees Celsius.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The medical staff, wearing light gray gloves designed for freezers, attempted to remove the paper box inside the black box. However, the box containing the vaccine model was stuck and would not come off. Due to the dry ice used to maintain the Pfizer vaccine’s required storage temperature of minus 60 to minus 90 degrees Celsius, the paper box inside the portable container had frozen and adhered to the container.

Vaccine Model Box Could Not Be Removed, Causing Confusion
"Temperature Maintained, No Problem with Vaccine"

"It was fine earlier..." The flustered medical staff asked the press to leave and tried reopening the box again. They finally managed to open the paper box, revealing two more white paper boxes inside. The medical staff took out the two white boxes and placed them into the ultra-low temperature freezer. Each white box actually contains 195 vials of 5 ml each of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

On this day, a simulation drill was conducted in preparation for the arrival of tens of thousands of Pfizer vaccines secured through the COVAX Facility. The drill focused on checking whether the vaccine transport, storage, and distribution temperatures were properly maintained under actual supply conditions. The drill was conducted using vaccine models.

An official from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency explained, "Even if the paper box does not come off easily, it is not a problem. Since the temperature was maintained, there is no issue with the vaccine." The official added, "In the U.S., there are also cases where boxes are difficult to remove, and videos are provided to resolve this."

Earlier that morning, President Moon Jae-in observed the COVID-19 vaccine transport simulation drill and urged thorough preparation for the entire process from transport to storage. President Moon said, "Please conduct the simulation drill thoroughly so that vaccination can proceed without any setbacks," and ordered the establishment of contingency plans for unexpected situations.

In response, Jeong Eun-kyeong, Commissioner of the KDCA, said, "We have virtual contingency scenarios for 15 different situations," and added, "We will carefully check for possible unexpected situations at each stage, prepare measures to handle them, and provide sufficient training so that the personnel in charge are fully aware."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.