COVID Vaccine: Snowy Sunday Leads To Many Distribution Site Closures, But Some People Didn't Get The Memo
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Despite the snow, many people spent Sunday trying to get their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
But due to closures, quite a few went home disappointed, CBS2's Dave Carlin reported.
Electronic highway signs broke the news to some vaccine seekers driving to Jones Beach. No shots were to be given on what was a snowy Sunday.
"Nah, it's not worth it. The roads are bad. I don't think it's worth it for everybody to come out," said John McCormick of Bellmore.
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A day before the storm arrived, Gov. Andrew Cuomo suspended vaccinations and testing at some state-run mass sites and neighborhood pop-ups.
Finding doors locked and no one inside First Baptist Church in East Elmhurst surprised one woman with a confirmed Sunday appointment.
She declined CBS2's request for an interview, leaving in the deepening snow after she told Carlin she was disappointed she walked to the location for nothing.
People with appointments canceled by the storm have been promised they'll get new ones rescheduled to take place this coming week.
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"I was anxious about the snow," Wantagh resident Christina Wrigley said.
When Wrigley drove from Long Island to Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, she saw a ghost town where COVID-19 testing takes place in the parking lot.
So she worried about getting her vaccination.
"I kept checking to see if I got an email or a text message," Wrigley said.
But shots were being given as scheduled inside the main building.
"Didn't hurt. It was great. I feel free," Wrigley said.
City-run sites were open Sunday. Mayor Bill de Blasio has been under pressure to respond to allegations doses are going to waste due to a lack of proper outreach.
A group of Nassau County legislators again demanded the city lift residency restrictions, so people from outside the five boroughs can travel in to use the city-run vaccination hubs and mass sites.
Gov. Cuomo's office said state-run vaccination centers and pop-up neighborhood sites will be open Monday.
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