Lineups upon lineups of vehicles can be seen at Evraz Place in Regina as residents wait to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine at a drive-thru immunization clinic.
The clinic, which opened at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, is vaccinating only people aged 64 years of age with a birthdate between Mar. 16, 1956 and Mar. 15, 1957. Some vehicles showed up to the grounds as early as 4:00 a.m. or 5:00 a.m. to get a spot in line.
A look at the drive-thru immunization clinic at Evraz Place in Regina. Vehicles are lined up and looping all around the grounds to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine. Some showed up as early as 4 or 5 a.m. #Regina #YQR #Sask pic.twitter.com/DTxpnenF1H
— Moises Canales (@MoisesCanalesJr) March 15, 2021
Kenda Ashton, who arrived to the lineup at around 6:45 a.m., said it’s positive to see more people are getting vaccinated for COVID-19. However she described the experience so far as “messy” with the different lineups and miscommunication regarding which vehicles get to go in first for their shot.
She said some vehicles that showed up later were getting ahead of others that arrived earlier, which had Ashton questioning the first-come, first-serve method.
“I would say there were maybe 100 vehicles before us, and [staff] had the first line moving while they were threading people coming from Lewvan Drive into the first line,” explained Ashton.
“People were getting frustrated and were jumping out of their cars to talk to these guys. They realized now that they might have made a mistake, so hopefully they can fix it.”
Despite her frustration, Ashton said she’s relieved to finally be receiving her first dose of the vaccine.
“I feel like I drew the lucky straw. At least I get to go in and get my vaccine.”
Drive-thru clinic hours extended
The SHA has extended its hours for the Regina drive-thru immunization site to 11:30 p.m. Monday night. The clinic was originally set to stay open until 7:30 p.m. before the change.
People are reminded that the clinic is only inoculating people aged 64. Security checkpoints have been established to validate ages before vehicles can enter the facility.
Residents are being instructed to enter the grounds from the Lewvan Drive and 11th Avenue entrance and to follow signage on-site. A valid health card and/or identification will be requested for each person getting the vaccine.
Those accessing the clinic are also being asked to wear a short-sleeved shirt and to wear a mask at all times.
