Extreme winter weather upending vaccination efforts across nation
Extreme winter weather upending vax efforts across nation
By
Monica Danielle, AccuWeather Managing Editor
Updated Feb 12, 2021 7:48 PM EST
Tens of thousands of Americans hoping to be the next in line for COVID-19 vaccinations have been forced to wait after rounds of brutal winter weather across the United States have repeatedly interfered with vaccination efforts. And that wintry interference is far from over.
AccuWeather meteorologists warn that one of the busiest winter weather patterns in decades will continue to bombard much of the country into next week.
This week, snowy conditions and icy roads forced vaccination sites to shut down from the West Coast into the Midwest, South and Northeast.
In Texas, where a deadly pileup due to icy roads in Fort Worth killed six, Dallas’ largest vaccination site was shut down. Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins told NBCDFW, "We really had no choice. We had seniors coming from all over to get their shots. We can't put them at risk, and our volunteers are sliding around out here just trying to walk, so we had to make the call to shut it down."
In a strange twist of temperature phenomena, although a deep freeze is critical to storing the vaccine, it has been so cold in Texas, officials have worried that they can't keep the vaccine warm enough at outdoor drive-thru sites.
"They're considering moving upcoming vaccination events indoors," Jenkins said. "It's gonna be so cold that even with the space heaters we don't think we can keep the vaccine warm enough to not gel up on us outside at the drive-thrus."
Jenkins went on to explain that once the vaccine has been brought out of its deep freeze, it must be kept at a temperature between 40 degrees and 76 degrees for the drug's efficacy to be maintained. He said space heaters are used to keep the vaccine from falling below 40, but with the harsh weather recently, the heaters haven't been getting the job done.
"The weather will have an effect on us," Jenkins declared. Indeed, AccuWeather is calling for highs in the teens on Monday.
The weather caused issues for thousands of Oklahoma residents hoping to get vaccinated this week. In Tulsa, a mass vaccination site was shut down, forcing 2,000 appointments to be rescheduled and another 700 appointments in Oklahoma City were delayed.
“It’s just another challenge with this vaccine program. You talk about all the logistical challenges, and now Mother Nature wants to make it a little bit more of a challenge for us,” Oklahoma Deputy Health Commissioner Keith Reed told The Associated Press.
Harsh temperatures caused mass vaccination drive-thru sites operated by the National Guard in Missouri to postpone appointments.
“The National Guard tells us it’s very difficult to thaw frozen vaccine at an outdoor event when the temperature may be 5 degrees,” Robert Knodell, deputy chief of staff for Gov. Mike Parson, told the AP.
A drive-thru vaccination clinic for 4,500 seniors 80 and older at Portland International Airport this weekend was canceled after a forecast of more than a foot of snow.
"Our goal is to keep our patients, members and volunteers safe by mitigating the risk of driving/commuting in the snow and exposure to freezing temperatures for both patient and staff safety reasons,” Oregon Health & Science University said in a statement.
A mass vaccination site at the Oregon Convention Center is also closely monitoring the weather. "Depending on the severity of the weather event, there may be a late opening or early closure. A total closure would only occur in the worst case,” according to All4Oregon's issued statement.
Similar scenes are playing out in cities across the country. On the opposite coast, in Virginia, several weekend cancellations due to weather were announced.
The elderly are still the focus of most vaccination sites and with the injury rate from slips and falls on ice or snow highest among that population, state and local health officials say the risk of accidents outweighs the benefits of a timely slot.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed statistics Thursday reporting nearly 35 million people have received at least one dose and 11 million have received both of the two doses required by the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.
Of particular concern to those individuals who have already received the first shot is an extended delay of the second shot due to bad weather. But Dr. Dale Bratzler, Oklahoma University Health's chief quality officer, said the shot will still work whenever it's given, but within six weeks from the date of the first shot is ideal.
“If you don’t get it within the 21 or 28 days, that’s OK,” Bratzler said. “Just go ahead and get it as soon as you can," he told the AP.
If you are scheduled to receive the COVID-19 vaccine but are concerned that your clinic might be closed due to the weather, you can check your state health department's website.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, Fubo, and Verizon Fios.
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News / Winter Weather
Extreme winter weather upending vaccination efforts across nation
Extreme winter weather upending vax efforts across nation
By Monica Danielle, AccuWeather Managing Editor
Updated Feb 12, 2021 7:48 PM EST
AP Photo/Gerry Broome
Tens of thousands of Americans hoping to be the next in line for COVID-19 vaccinations have been forced to wait after rounds of brutal winter weather across the United States have repeatedly interfered with vaccination efforts. And that wintry interference is far from over.
AccuWeather meteorologists warn that one of the busiest winter weather patterns in decades will continue to bombard much of the country into next week.
This week, snowy conditions and icy roads forced vaccination sites to shut down from the West Coast into the Midwest, South and Northeast.
In Texas, where a deadly pileup due to icy roads in Fort Worth killed six, Dallas’ largest vaccination site was shut down. Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins told NBCDFW, "We really had no choice. We had seniors coming from all over to get their shots. We can't put them at risk, and our volunteers are sliding around out here just trying to walk, so we had to make the call to shut it down."
In a strange twist of temperature phenomena, although a deep freeze is critical to storing the vaccine, it has been so cold in Texas, officials have worried that they can't keep the vaccine warm enough at outdoor drive-thru sites.
"They're considering moving upcoming vaccination events indoors," Jenkins said. "It's gonna be so cold that even with the space heaters we don't think we can keep the vaccine warm enough to not gel up on us outside at the drive-thrus."
Jenkins went on to explain that once the vaccine has been brought out of its deep freeze, it must be kept at a temperature between 40 degrees and 76 degrees for the drug's efficacy to be maintained. He said space heaters are used to keep the vaccine from falling below 40, but with the harsh weather recently, the heaters haven't been getting the job done.
"The weather will have an effect on us," Jenkins declared. Indeed, AccuWeather is calling for highs in the teens on Monday.
The weather caused issues for thousands of Oklahoma residents hoping to get vaccinated this week. In Tulsa, a mass vaccination site was shut down, forcing 2,000 appointments to be rescheduled and another 700 appointments in Oklahoma City were delayed.
“It’s just another challenge with this vaccine program. You talk about all the logistical challenges, and now Mother Nature wants to make it a little bit more of a challenge for us,” Oklahoma Deputy Health Commissioner Keith Reed told The Associated Press.
Harsh temperatures caused mass vaccination drive-thru sites operated by the National Guard in Missouri to postpone appointments.
“The National Guard tells us it’s very difficult to thaw frozen vaccine at an outdoor event when the temperature may be 5 degrees,” Robert Knodell, deputy chief of staff for Gov. Mike Parson, told the AP.
A drive-thru vaccination clinic for 4,500 seniors 80 and older at Portland International Airport this weekend was canceled after a forecast of more than a foot of snow.
"Our goal is to keep our patients, members and volunteers safe by mitigating the risk of driving/commuting in the snow and exposure to freezing temperatures for both patient and staff safety reasons,” Oregon Health & Science University said in a statement.
A mass vaccination site at the Oregon Convention Center is also closely monitoring the weather. "Depending on the severity of the weather event, there may be a late opening or early closure. A total closure would only occur in the worst case,” according to All4Oregon's issued statement.
Similar scenes are playing out in cities across the country. On the opposite coast, in Virginia, several weekend cancellations due to weather were announced.
The elderly are still the focus of most vaccination sites and with the injury rate from slips and falls on ice or snow highest among that population, state and local health officials say the risk of accidents outweighs the benefits of a timely slot.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed statistics Thursday reporting nearly 35 million people have received at least one dose and 11 million have received both of the two doses required by the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.
Of particular concern to those individuals who have already received the first shot is an extended delay of the second shot due to bad weather. But Dr. Dale Bratzler, Oklahoma University Health's chief quality officer, said the shot will still work whenever it's given, but within six weeks from the date of the first shot is ideal.
“If you don’t get it within the 21 or 28 days, that’s OK,” Bratzler said. “Just go ahead and get it as soon as you can," he told the AP.
If you are scheduled to receive the COVID-19 vaccine but are concerned that your clinic might be closed due to the weather, you can check your state health department's website.
Related:
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, Fubo, and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo