Gov. Dennis “Delta” Pineda inspects Covid vax cold storage facility with BM Rosve V. Henson and PDRRMO Chief Angelina Blanco. All photos by Bong Lacson
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO — Gov. Dennis “Delta” Pineda on Friday inspected the Capitol’s cold storage facility that will keep the first batch of 300,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine purchased by the Pampanga provincial government from out of its own funds.
Housing six freezers, the facility is located at the Provincial Engineer’s Office Compound in Barangay Sindalan here.
Four freezers can keep an average of 70,000 doses of AstraZeneca. Another freezer can hold 51,030 doses of Pfizer. One can store 5,240 vials of Moderna or up to 48,960 vials of Sinovac, according to provincial administrator Atty. Charlie Chua. The freezers’ temperatures are set according to the brands of the vaccine.
Pineda said local governments can also avail themselves of the use of the storage for their own vaccine supplies.
The first batch of 300,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines are scheduled to arrive between June and July 2021, said Governor Pineda. Coming in two doses, these are to be injected at no cost to 300,000 individuals among health workers, essential workers and senior citizens.
A second batch of another 300,000 of the same vaccine brand are expected soon after.
The vaccination will be done in private hospitals and the provincial government’s 10 district hospitals, he said. These will also monitor the recipients’ reactions to the vaccine.
The governor said more doses would be purchased so that more Pampanga residents have antibodies against SARS-CoV2, the virus that causes COVID-19, which has killed 438 people and infected 7,161 others in the province as of March 3.
Pineda said the national government has allocated to Pampanga a share of the Sinovac and AstraZeneca vaccines donations through the Jose. B. Lingad Memorial Regional Hospital.
“Magpabakuna po tayo. Proteksyon po natin ito at ng ating pamilya laban sa Covid-19,” he urged his constituents. — With Pampanga PIO
