Venice and its lagoon represent one of Italy’s treasures, but when it comes to bringing COVID-19 vaccines to the elderly living on the islets, major logistical problems arise. The city is taking creative measures to bring the vaccine to its hard to reach residents and have turned a water bus, or vaporetto, into a floating vaccination centre.
Around 100 elderly people living in the small island of Sant’Erasmo, in the Venice lagoon, were expected to make their way to the islet’s dock on Monday (April 5) to receive doses of the Moderna and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines.
The Veneto Region, which turned one of Venice’s iconic water busses into a docked clinic, hopes to provide a crucial service for those who may have mobility difficulties.
Director of Venice local health authority, Edgardo Contato, told Reuters the elderly could “hope for the future” after receiving the vaccine without needing to leave the island.
Italy reported 326 coronavirus-related deaths on Sunday (April 4), registering so far 111,030 deaths linked to COVID-19 since its outbreak emerged in February last year, the second-highest toll in Europe after Britain and the seventh-highest in the world.
(philenews)
