Hospitals prepare for medical supply shortages following Medline warehouse fire in Tracy

VISALIA, Calif. (KFSN) -- Hospitals across California are working to manage critical medical supplies after a massive fire destroyed a Medline warehouse in Tracy, disrupting deliveries from one of their largest suppliers.

"A whole entire 1 million square foot warehouse up in flames? It's, it's, it's alarming to see," said Jag Batth, chief operating officer at Kaweah Health in Visalia.

The fire burned through thousands of pounds of equipment essential for patient care, including bandages and detergents. Kaweah Health is among many facilities that depend heavily on Medline for everyday supplies.
"It's really across the board that we use Medline quite heavily in the organization," Batth said.

Batth said he began contacting Medline leadership as early as 9 a.m. Friday, as the scale of the damage became clear. Supply closets throughout the hospital are typically stocked with inventory from the now-destroyed Tracy warehouse, but with the fire continuing into its second day, daily deliveries have been halted.

"We are a level three trauma center. We want to make sure we have supplies on hand for those last-minute surgical cases," Batth said.

Hospitals and Medline are now developing plans to manage inventory, with a focus on preventing hoarding and ensuring fair distribution among facilities that rely on the supplier.

Despite the disruption, Batth said there is no immediate risk of running out of supplies at Kaweah Health.

"We've learned a lot, and we have a lot of redundancies in place to make sure that, you know, it's not like we're going to run out of anything tomorrow. We do have a number of things in stock that it's going to last us a week or two at least," he said.

Emergency care provider American Ambulance also sought to reassure patients, saying in a statement, "We have built robust redundancies to ensure continuous, uninterrupted operations for our patients and communities."

The Tracy warehouse played a key role in supplying medical centers during the COVID-19 pandemic, an experience Batth said helped prepare hospitals for potential shortages.

Looking ahead, Batth said the coming week will be critical in determining the long-term impact on supply chains. Medline has already begun rerouting deliveries from another warehouse, he added, while emphasizing relief that no injuries were reported in the fire.

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