Seniors get drive-through vaccines in Thornton

The fire chief said the department received training from the CDC on rolling out vaccines and were pleased with how smoothly the first day went.

“Fortunately, we’ve had tremendous support here in the city to be able to set up what was originally a testing system and then transitioned into a vaccination program, based on what we did early on,” said Thornton Fire chief Gordie Olson.

Among those who received a vaccine on the first day were the retired former fire chief Greg Sheehan and his wife Dee, who said they saw the announcement of the clinic on Facebook over the weekend and signed up right away.

“We don’t want to get sick. We are old and we don’t want to die,” Dee Sheehan said.

Patients who received the vaccine were asked to stay on site in their cars for 15-30 minutes with paramedics nearby in case they suffered a reaction to the shot.

In Thornton, all slots are already filled for the upcoming clinics announced by the city to be held later this week. Thornton fire officials said additional dates and slots will likely be announced as more vaccines become available, cautioning those announcements may come on a last-minute basis since vaccine shipments are arriving unpredictably.

The state of Colorado launched a website to help people who are 70 and older find the vaccine.

Officials advised seniors who are looking to receive the vaccine to check with their health insurance provider, their primary care physician, and their community's health department, and remain patient while waiting for their opportunity to get the vaccine.

The state is in the first of three phases of distribution of the vaccine, and most of the doses that have been administered so far have been to front line health care workers. Seniors 70 and older are included in Phase 1B of the distribution plan.

State data updated on Monday afternoon shows more than 223,000 Coloradans have received the vaccine as of Sunday, including nearly 36,000 who have received both of the necessary doses.