Eight centuries ago, the cathedral in Salisbury, England, soared the faithful. Now the host is for the hopeful, such as 85-year-old Daphne Morant, who recently joined more than 1,000 others vaccinated against COVID-19 in a single day.
When people come in, they register and sit down at a booth. Because the cathedral is so spacious, 12 people can be vaccinated at the same time. It is then monitored for adverse reactions.
“I did not feel anything,” Morant Roxana Saberi told CBS News after she was shot. “Besides it’s cold, you know, if you wait. That’s the only thing I can say!”
While waiting for safe social distances, they relax to the organ music of Bach and Handel. David Halls, the music director of Salisbury Cathedral, said: “Don’t forget, they haven’t heard live music in months!”
CBS News
This is an unusual place to treat patients. But Dr Michele Giorgi said it is ideal for administering large amounts of Pfizer vaccine, which spoils quickly at room temperature.
“It allows us to adapt the space for what we need in terms of vaccinations, observation areas and exits,” Giorgi said. In addition, the cathedral is in a central location: “Everyone knows where it is. It’s not hard to find.”
The United Kingdom has now vaccinated more than six million people. This gives him the third highest per capita vaccination rate among large countries (behind Israel and the United Arab Emirates).
In the UK, other sites that have been shut down by the closure have been converted into venues for mass vaccinations, with people queuing at horse racing tracks, a rugby stadium and a cinema. “Sorry a movie is not being shot, ha ha!” says one woman who has been vaccinated.
Officials say nearly a tenth of the population has already received the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
Other countries are also setting up temporary mega-sites in unconventional locations, such as a food court in Moscow, a museum in Beijing, and next to the iconic ‘Christ the Savior’ statue in Rio de Janeiro.
Israel, which leads the world in vaccinations per capita, now injects up to 7,000 people a day on the historic Rabin Square in Tel Aviv. “It’s not only a common feeling, and they can see their neighbors here, but also a sense of celebration,” municipality spokesman Eytan Halon explained.
But in the European Union, vaccinations at hubs such as an ice rink in Berlin have come to a halt following a shortage of vaccines.
Also in the UK, officials are expecting delays in delivery this week, which threatens to give the plan to a dose of about 15 million people by mid-February.
Saberi asks dr. Giorgi: “Is it going fast enough?”
“It never goes fast enough,” he replies.
As for those who have already rolled up their sleeves, they hope it is a step towards more freedom. “I’ll see my son and daughter again, and it’s going to be fun!” said one woman.
Despite progress with mass vaccinations, Britain is still struggling with a more contagious variant of the virus. Officials are now considering stricter restrictions, such as stricter border controls and holding schools until Easter.