DORTCHES, N.C. (WNCN) — A confirmed tornado touched down in northeastern North Carolina Wednesday afternoon, leaving multiple injured and damaging a Pfizer facility.
The tornado touched down northeast of Rocky Mount shortly after 12:30 p.m. local time. Based on initial storm surveys, the National Weather Service tells Nexstar’s WNCN that winds of up to 150 mph were reached, giving the tornado a rare EF3 rating. Officials say the area sees tornadoes of that strength only every few years.
According to the National Weather Service in Raleigh, a severe storm capable of producing 60 mph wind gusts was located near Rocky Mount, moving east at 25 mph just 10 minutes before the tornado touched down.
WNCN received reports of roofs being torn off homes, a roof collapse, and power lines down, some of which made long stretches of roads impassable Wednesday evening. Injuries, including lacerations, have also been reported in connection to the tornado.
The Edgecombe County Sheriff’s Office says they have reports of two people with life-threatening injuries and one non-life-threatening injury related to the storm. So far, there have been no reported deaths due to the tornado.
“I never seen, like, except on TV. Terrifying. Scared. We didn’t know what to do. We started panicking,” said Kenneth Arnold, who was working on a home when the tornado rolled through. He told WNCN he and his crew hid in a shed as the storm moved in.
“[I thought] the shed isn’t going to last. It started shaking,” he explained. “It started shaking, vibrating the windows, and sort of cracking the windows open.”
Bryon Varnell, who came out to check on his family, said his niece was forced to protect her three children as their home was hit by the storm.
“She took the brunt of the damage coming in off of them,” he explained. “Three small children she has. She said she watched the roof come off the house just held them and prayed.”
A major Pfizer pharmaceutical plant in Rocky Mount was also heavily damaged.
A company representative told WNCN there had been no reports of serious injuries caused by the storm. In an email to the Associated Press, Pfizer confirmed all employees had been safely evacuated and accounted for.
Images, seen below, show the partially-collapsed roof, scattered debris, and overturned semis.
The Pfizer plant is damaged after severe weather passed the area on Wednesday, July 19, 2023 in Rocky Mount, N.C. (WTVD via AP) 
A truck is overturned and the Pfizer plant is damaged after severe weather passed the area on Wednesday, July 19, 2023 in Rocky Mount, N.C. (WTVD via AP) 
The Pfizer plant is damaged after severe weather passed the area on Wednesday, July 19, 2023 in Rocky Mount, N.C. (WTVD via AP) 
Debris is scattered around the Pfizer facility on Wednesday, July 19, 2023, in Rocky Mount, N.C., after damage from severe weather. (Travis Long/The News & Observer via AP)
The Pfizer plant stores large quantities of medicine that were tossed about, said Nash County Sheriff Keith Stone, adding, “I’ve got reports of 50,000 pallets of medicine that are strewn across the facility and damaged through the rain and the wind.”
The plant produces anesthesia and other drugs as well as nearly 25 percent of all sterile injectable medications used in U.S. hospitals, Pfizer said on its website. Erin Fox, senior pharmacy director at University of Utah Health, said the damage “will likely lead to long-term shortages while Pfizer works to either move production to other sites or rebuilds.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.