Mass COVID-19 vaccinations begin for Windsor residents 80 and older

Vaccination of Windsor community residents ages 80 and older began on Monday morning, with the use of the WFCU Centre as a COVID-19 vaccine clinic.

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Progress continues in the fight against COVID-19 in Windsor-Essex on Monday with the start of vaccinations for seniors in the community ages 80 and older.

It’s the first time the COVID-19 vaccine has been made available to the general public in the region outside long-term care facilities — requiring the conversion of the WFCU Centre (8787 McHugh St.) into a mass vaccination site.

Similar preparations are underway at Nature Fresh Farms Recreation Centre in Leamington (249 Sherk St.), where a second mass vaccination site is set to open on March 8.

All vaccine recipients must pre-register for an appointment via the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit’s online portal at wechu.org.

Help with pre-registration is available via the WECHU’s hotline, 519-251-4072.

Dr. Wajid Ahmed, the region’s Medical Officer of Health, asked the public for patience, as vaccine supplies remain limited and demand is high.

“It is definitely an exciting time,” Ahmed said.

Vaccinations are not available on a walk-in basis. Ahmed said there are thousands of residents of Windsor-Essex who qualify for Phase 1 of the vaccine rollout. Appointments are currently being made with a randomization system.

“Hopefully, we will move through the list quickly,” Ahmed said.

The health unit expects to vaccinate 150 to 200 senior-age residents daily, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., five days a week.

The vaccine being administered in Windsor this week is the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine — which requires two doses spaced three weeks apart for maximum effectiveness.

Ahmed said those attending their initial vaccination appointment will be told details about their second appointment after receipt of their first shot.

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As of Monday morning, a total of 11,553 Windsor-Essex residents have received the required two doses of the vaccine.

Meanwhile, over a three-day period — from Feb. 27 to March 1 — the health unit reported 83 new COVID-19 cases in Windsor-Essex.

The latest increase, on Monday, was 28 cases.

To date, 13,014 people in Windsor-Essex have had COVID-19.

Three new COVID-19 deaths were reported on Feb. 27, bringing the region’s total toll to the novel coronavirus to 382 people.

As of Monday, 290 cases in the region are considered currently active, with 41 of them requiring hospitalization.

A total of 12,342 cases are considered resolved.

There are current outbreaks at two long-term care or retirement facilities, four workplaces, two hospital locations, and two community locations.

More to come.