A coronavirus vaccination clinic run by Riverside County in Beaumont has been closed for the remainder of Friday, April 16 after a fight between two female nurses, provincial officials said.
The incident, which affected 245 appointments, took place at the Albert A. Chatigny Senior Community Recreation Center, 1310 Oak Valley Parkway. The clinic is expected to reopen on Monday, April 19th.
The fight, which was reported at about 10:16 a.m., involved a ‘personal issue between the two nurses’, said Marcedes Cashmer, a Beaumont police spokesman.
One nurse, who was brought to the hospital and later released, was quoted on the grounds of assault but not jailed, Cashmer said, adding that she did not have the name of the nurse.
The other nurse complained of pain but was not admitted to the hospital, Cashmer said. Witnesses intervened in the quarrel, she said.
Shane Reichardt, a spokeswoman for the department of emergency management, said in an email that staff were “solving a staff case” when it intervened in a physical altercation between two nurses and staff.
“The clinic will remain closed for the rest of the day …” Reichardt said Friday afternoon.
Both of the nurses who fought were women, said Reichardt, who did not want to reveal their names. No vaccines or equipment were damaged, he said.
“Some nurses were working on their contract day on their last day, so it was decided to close the clinic and start a new team on Monday,” Reichardt added.
The Chatigny Clinic, which is open on weekdays, is one of four permanent vaccination clinics run by the province’s Department of Public Health.
Last month, the country administered its one millionth vaccine dose at the Beaumont Center.