Hundreds vaccinated, thousands of shots still available at northeast Calgary walk-in clinic
A number of northeast residents woke up early Saturday to obtain their initial COVID-19 vaccine at the province's first specifically designed walk-in clinic.
Hundreds passed through a quick-moving queue at the Village Square Leisure Centre in the early morning. Many more are expected to filter through throughout the day.
Officials announced the opening of the clinic earlier in the week.
It has the capacity to deliver first doses of the Pfizer vaccine to about 5,000 people, though most officials say more doses could be brought in if demand is high.
The goal is to boost the area's low immunization rates, which come after some of the highest rates of COVID-19 in the country.
The Village Square clinic aims to tackle some of the obstacles residents see as immunization barricades.
"(For many) in the northeast, it's not as easy to book (vaccines) online because they don't know what their work schedule is going to be, or it's very difficult to take time off work," Centre for Newcomers CEO Anila Lee Yuen told CTV News. "There's also other types of physical barriers, like transportation or reliable access to Wifi. Here, at any given time, there are probably 20 to 30 different languages that are spoken, and we can easily get any other language on the phone if you really need to in a bind."
Lee Yuen says the pop-up was promoted with local flyers in more than 70 languages.
Dozens told CTV News how excited they were after leaving the clinic Saturday morning.
The area MLA said it was an emotional time.
"I think you're seeing a lot of smiling faces here, and people who are just grateful to get this opportunity to come in and get their vaccine," Rajan Sawhney, Alberta’s minister of community and social services said. "This (clinic) will be probably the most important thing I do in my role as minister and MLA in government."
"To have a drop-in centre where you don't need an appointment – you just show up – is very big," Mayor Naheed Nenshi said. "You can come early in the morning or late in the evening. I think it will make a huge difference."
The clinic is open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on June 5 and 6.
No appointment is required, but participants will need to bring a piece of photo identification as well as their Alberta health card, if they have one.
Ward 5 Coun. George Chahal called the opening an "exciting day."
"I'm born and raised in these communities and I know the importance of getting back together," he said. "This is open for everybody here in the city of Calgary. This is a tremendous partnership of everybody coming together."
Other northeast clinics at the Genesis Centre and in the Northgate Village Mall are open seven days a week but require an appointment.
Alberta's first drive-in immunization site opens at 911 32 Ave. N.E. on Monday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.