Coronavirus NYC: FEMA vaccine mega-sites open in Brooklyn and Queens

Coronavirus Update for New York

ByEyewitness News WABC logo

Thursday, February 25, 2021

NJ Burkett reports on the two new mega-sites in Queens and Brooklyn.

NEW YORK (WABC) -- New York state's largest COVID vaccination site opened Wednesday morning - and it is not located at Yankee Stadium or the Javits Center, but on the campus of Medgar Evers College in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.

The mega-site is a joint partnership of New York state and FEMA.

Kemberly Richardson reports on the new mega-sites in Brooklyn and Queens.

It is opening Wednesday along with another NY-FEMA mega-site at York College in Jamaica, Queens.

Both sites have the capacity to vaccinate 3,000 people a day, with all of those shots coming directly from the federal government.

Lauren Glassberg has the latest on the vaccination sites in NYC and who is next in line for the shot.

The doses are coming above and beyond the state's normal allotment, in an attempt to flood with vaccine those communities most heavily impacted by COVID-19.

For the first week of operation, appointments will be exclusively for residents of the sites' surrounding neighborhoods.

"What we're saying as a state is we have to be equitable in the administration of the vaccine," said Governor Andrew Cuomo. "And we have to correct for the injustice that we just saw perpetrated by COVID. Not only is this the largest site ever created in the State of New York, it's special because it recognizes the equity that must be achieved."

"We know that this vaccine will end this crisis," said NY Assembly Member Latrice Walker. "It has already taken so much from communities of color, from our NYCHA residents, from our churches, from our families. Especially, especially here in Brooklyn."

ALSO WATCH: NYC public middle schools prepare to reopen

Jim Dolan has more on the reopening of NYC middle schools for in-person learning.

The MTA is supporting the effort by increasing bus service to both mega-sites. Drivers ran through training routes on Tuesday.

The additional service will bring residents direct from NYCHA complexes and other parts of Brooklyn and Queens which are not already well-served by public transit.

The MTA is promising more information on those specific routes in the coming days.

Eligible New Yorkers can currently schedule appointments for the Brooklyn and Queens sites by utilizing New York's "Am I Eligible" website or by calling the state's COVID-19 Vaccination Hotline at 1-833-NYS-4-VAX (1-833-697-4829).

Unlike other sites, you can also make an appointment in person.

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