New UArizona facility can hold more than 1 million COVID-19 vaccine doses

PHOENIX — The University of Arizona has finished construction on a storage facility that can hold more than 1.6 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to a university press release.

The facility, which is referred to as a “freezer farm,” includes seven ultracold freezers that run at -112 degrees Fahrenheit and another set at -4 degrees Fahrenheit with two similar freezers to come, the release said.

The university’s freezer farm could be ready by the time Arizona’s first COVID-19 shipments arrive in mid-December, the release said, providing a place for doses to be held and readied for distribution.

The freezers can hold between 100,000 and 187,000 doses apiece, according to David T. Harris, who is the executive director of the University of Arizona Health Services Biorepository.

“The University of Arizona is poised to be instrumental in receiving, managing and distributing COVID-19 vaccine,” Harris said in the release.

“We have been involved in research with ICU and COVID patients, as well as with producing the PCR tests and tens of thousands of rapid antigen tests. We know exactly how to work in that environment.”

The two leading COVID-19 vaccines, from Pfizer and Moderna, are reliant upon messenger RNA, which must remain frozen to stay intact and be functional.

The Pfizer vaccine is capable of lasting up to six months when kept in ultracold conditions, similar to the ones that the freezer farm will feature.

The Pfizer vaccine must be kept at -94 degrees Fahrenheit to remain effective, while Moderna’s also must be kept frozen, though it can survive in -4 degree Fahrenheit conditions.

Chris Kopach, who serves as the incident commander for UArizona’s Incident Command System — a team made up of university representatives and members of the community — believes the unit’s work will help the public going forward.

“I’m very proud our team in looking ahead in a forward manner to address a major need in establishing the freezer farm to house the vaccine and provide collaborative support for our county,” Kopach said. “The ability to provide storage and distribution will provide benefits to all of Pima County.”

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