UNCW holds first day of vaccine clinic

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — UNCW is turning the Burney Center on campus into a vaccination clinic for students and staff starting Thursday.

Front line workers from cafeteria staff to student residential assistants showed up Thursday morning to get their COVID-19 Johnson and Johnson shots.

University officials tell us they’re spacing out vaccination appointments to ensure proper social distancing protocol.

Sophomore, Alfredo Espinal was the very first to get vaccinated at UNCW’s clinic. He said he’s doing this for his mother, who is in a high risk group. Espinal said he can’t wait to see his family in a couple of weeks.

“Not being able to go home, like only being able to go home after a certain number of days… I quarantine before I go home usually, because she’s high risk,” explained Espinal. “But now she’s vaccinated. And I’m vaccinated. It makes things easier to go home, I guess. Being able to see her more often than I used to.”

After getting their shots, students sat in a waiting area for about 15 minutes as health staff monitored them, ensuring no had an allergic reaction.