Yesterday marked the final big vaccination day at the Laugardalshöll arena. Approximately 10,000 individuals were vaccinated, and healthcare workers were regaled with music.
Over 75% now fully vaccinated
In the final big push of the vaccination campaign, roughly 10,000 individuals showed up to the Laugardalshöll arena yesterday to receive jabs. According to Covid.is, 75.8% of Icelanders are now fully vaccinated, with a further 12.9% having received the first dose of their vaccine.
The atmosphere in the arena yesterday was festive. “It was quite the final spurt, after this big week. Having run out of AstraZeneca doses, we were forced to create a cocktail with AstraZeneca and Pfizer,” Ragnheiður Ósk Erlendsdóttir, Head of Nursing at the Capital Area Healthcare Centre, stated in an interview with RÚV. Although the above-mentioned cocktail offers significant protection, a few opted to wait for the next shipment of AstraZeneca.
The unvaccinated can still register
As reported by RÚV, individuals waiting on their second dose of Pfizer will be called in over the next two Tuesdays. The same goes for those who have registered to receive the Janssen vaccine, and the authorities are also considering adding a small AstraZeneca day, as well. Those who have yet to be vaccinated can register through their respective healthcare providers or through the chat function on Heilsuvera.is.
Healthcare workers handling vaccinations will go on summer vacation from July 13 until August 17, and it has yet to be decided how vaccines will be administered after they return. However, a watershed moment will be reached soon when the makeshift vaccine centre at Laugardalshöll will be closed: “Yes, I expect so. Being here has been rather cosy. Really quite delightful, and the stadium managers deserve credit: they’ve been really helpful, and things have gone quite smoothly,” Ragnheiður Ósk stated.
Party into the evening
Despite the majority of Icelanders having been vaccinated, two individuals were diagnosed with COVID-19 this week. The two infections are related, and one of the individuals had already been vaccinated. Symptomatic individuals are encouraged to get tested, even if they are fully vaccinated, for they can still become infected and infect others. It is, however, highly unlikely that vaccinated individuals will become seriously ill.
Even though the final doses were administered at around 5 pm yesterday, healthcare workers who have administered vaccines at Laugardalshöll for the past weeks and months lingered in the arena. They convened to celebrate the success of their campaign and to watch a secret performer – who turned out to be Icelandic pop star Páll Óskar – step on stage (see accompanying photo above).
