Opening of vaccination sites in 2 new sites in Duval County

Two vaccination centers managed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency opened Sunday morning in Duval County.

Satellite sites have moved from Westside and Northwest Jacksonville to the Carver Center on 5th Avenue South in Jacksonville Beach and to the Oceanway Center on Sago Avenue West in Northside.

According to FEMA, the venues will open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for 10 days – until March 23. The sites will offer the Pfizer vaccine, and up to 500 injections can be given per day at each site.

Walk-in sites do not require an appointment and injections will be administered on a first come, first served basis.

Kelsy Adams, who works in higher education, waited in her car for the opening of the Carver Center site. She and a friend traveled about two hours from Gainesville to get the vaccine.

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“Everything is full yeah. It’s just … the medical facility and everything, you just can’t get in, there are people who have higher priority, ”Adams said. “So let’s try [the Jacksonville Beach site]. Nothing else, we each go to get food and drive home.

An hour before the site opened at the Carver Center, the line began to grow and wrap around the building.

People who live on the beaches said it was about accessibility.

“It’s a relief. We’ve all been waiting so it’s cool,” said Liz Root, a Jacksonville Beach resident. “I still want us to be careful until a majority of us I just don’t want it to be free-for-all.

“We need to make it available to everyone so that we can start doing what we need to do again,” said Burl White, a resident of Ponte Vedra Beach.

There was no line at the Oceanway Center site on Sunday morning when News4Jax pulled up.

COUNTY-BY-COUNTY: Where to get a COVID-19 vaccine in Northeast Florida

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The two original satellite sites of the Normandy Community Center and the Hammond Senior Center will return for second dose injections.

FEMA opened the two satellite sites in conjunction with the federally supported immunization clinic at the Gateway Mall on the north side. The site on Norwood Avenue is open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. 7 days a week and can administer 3000 doses per day. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is available at the Gateway Mall site – not at the Carver and Oceanway Center sites.

As of Monday, the age requirement for vaccinations drops to 60 at all locations in Florida.