Hundreds wait in the rain for more than an hour for COVID-19 vaccine in Fort Worth
Rain splattered the sidewalk on a particularly gray Thursday afternoon in Fort Worth as hundreds waited in line for more than an hour to receive their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
The hundred-or-so people waiting outside the Tarrant County Conference and Recreation Center carried umbrellas of varying shades, donned fluffy blankets and rubbed together gloved hands at 1:30 p.m. Thursday. Despite the rain and the 35-degree weather, many in line said they felt grateful to be there.
Stevie Cezar, 27, said she was not surprised by the long line since people want to make sure they are safe from coronavirus. Cezar clutched her chihuahua, Mouse, who shivered beneath her furry, plaid jacket and neon-green service dog vest. When asked if the line at 2300 Circle Drive was worth it, Cezar said, “Oh, heck yeah!”
“It’s better that than getting sick at home,” Cezar said. “Or worse, dying or giving it to someone you love.”
Cezar qualified for the vaccine since she works at an animal clinic and is considered a healthcare worker. After coronavirus vaccines arrived in mid-December, healthcare workers and first responders began receiving the vaccine as part of the state’s phase 1A plan. Texas officials started phase 1B Tuesday, which includes vaccinating those who are 65 years or older and those over the age of 16 with an underlying health condition. Tarrant County Public Health uses the Moderna vaccine, which currently can only be administered to those 18 and older. The vaccine requires two doses.
Laura Vogel, 52, Linda Holt, 57, and Beth Bond, 64, waited together near the end of the line at 1:30 p.m. Only about 30 people separated them from the white tent outside the entrance to the building. The women had been in line for an hour and eight minutes, according to the stop watch Vogel started when she got into the queue.
Vogel, a psychologist from Denton County, said her colleagues warned her about the long wait so she was able to dress warmly. But Holt shivered beneath a light jacket, and her gloveless hands clutched the pink umbrella a stranger had given her.
“It’s been going quicker than I thought it would,” Holt said cheerfully despite the cold. “It’s worth it to get the vaccine.”
Further back in line, Sammy, who is from Arlington but preferred not to give her full name for privacy reasons, said she was “pretty miserable.” She had to leave a family member who is on hospice care under the supervision of her granddaughter, and the family buried that person’s brother earlier in the day. She was worried about those waiting in line who had pre-existing conditions.
“It concerns me that they’re standing in the rain and are going to get sick,” the 78-year-old said.
As of Thursday evening, the Tarrant County Public Health had given 5,789 Moderna vaccines, said Brian Murnahan, Tarrant County Health Department’s public information officer. Tarrant County started immunizations on Dec. 23 and went through the first batch of vaccinations by Wednesday. Luckily, 7,200 additional doses arrived in the county on Wednesday.
Murnahan said the county’s distribution of vaccines is evolving as officials work through various logistical challenges. More vaccination sites will be opened once larger quantities of the vaccine are available.
“Right now we have a socially distant facility with almost 100 staff and volunteers providing vaccines,” he said.
Murnahan encouraged people to make an appointment before trying to get the vaccine to cut down on wait times. The registration portal is available on the county’s website at https://tcph.quickbase.com/db/bq3q4uet8. He also said people should stay tuned to the health department’s social media channels for updates.
“I am totally dismayed,” Carmen Horton, who drove from Las Colinas to get her vaccine, said as she waited in the long line. “But I’m so grateful and happy. I’m tired of being paranoid and hiding and running.”
After Horton made an appointment on Thursday to receive the vaccine, the Tarrant County Health Department sent her a message saying to arrive between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. At 1:30 p.m., she stepped into line, about 780 feet away from the entrance to the building.
“I’ll be here at 5 p.m., still in line,” Horton, a nurse practitioner, said. “It looks that way.”
But the line moved faster than she thought it would. At 3:17 p.m., Horton got her first dose of the vaccine.
“God is good!!” she told the Star-Telegram in a text.
John Peter Smith Health Network also is making the vaccine available to those 65 and older, as well as those with medical conditions that put them at high risk for severe illness. This includes, but is not limited to, cancer, chronic kidney disease, heart conditions, type 2 diabetes, pregnancy and obesity.
Those wishing to be vaccinated at JPS Health Network locations and who qualify are being asked to sign up for an appointment through MyChart at https://jpsmychart.jpshealth.org/JPSMyChart/Authentication/Login. Vaccines are available at Southeast Medical Home, Northeast Medical Home and Stop Six Clinic. Walk-ins aren’t available.
This story was originally published December 31, 2020 at 4:51 PM.
