NEW YORK – Members of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) began their COVID-19 vaccination process on Tuesday.
“I am confident that this vaccine will keep New York City firefighters healthy and safe in the performance of their duties,” said the FDNY Uniformed Firefighters Association which represents 20,000 active duty and retired firefighters in the city. . “The arrival and distribution of the vaccine is the turning point in the war against COVID-19, and this is essential for society to reopen. We applaud the New York State health officials who have made firefighters a priority, as our safety is of paramount importance to this city. “
The Fire Department said that at this stage of vaccination they plan to give the first dose to 450 of their members each day in three locations: at their training camp on Randall’s Island, at the paramedic academy in Queens and at the barracks in Brooklyn.
Firefighters vaccinated Tuesday will receive the second dose in 28 days.
The Fire Department obtained the first vaccines from Moderna Pharmaceuticals on December 21 and on December 23, it supplied the first dose to its team of paramedics and first responders.
New York expects to receive another 259,000 doses of vaccines this week: 139,400 from Pfizer and 119,600 from Moderna.
On the waiting list, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said, are high-risk hospital workers, federal health centers, emergency medical services, coroners, medical examiners, funeral home workers, the Office for People with Disabilities and the Centers for Mental health.
To date, some 140,000 New Yorkers, out of a population of more than 19 million, have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, as positive cases have soared to more than eight percent, the most high since May 8.
According to Cuomo, as of yesterday 7,559 people had been hospitalized and 114 patients died. About the same amount per day for the past two weeks.
The Fire Department, with around eleven thousand members, has been one of the worst hit by the pandemic with more than 5,800 infections and twelve deaths: five paramedics and seven civilian employees.
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