Advertisement
News

Southern California region opening large-scale COVID-19 vaccination sites at Disneyland and Dodger Stadium

Disneyland set to become a mass vaccination site this week, the first such site in Orange County
Disneyland is set to become a mass COVID-19 vaccination site this week, the first such location in Orange County.
(Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
By Andrew TurnerStaff Writer 
Share

The period leading up to the development and distribution of the coronavirus vaccines was often referred to as the sprint toward the vaccine.

California and public health officials are now racing to make sure that vaccine doses are taken out of the freezer and administered to prioritized populations.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said that Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles would be among a short list of mass vaccination centers opening this week. The home of the San Diego Padres, Petco Park, is also among the large-scale vaccination sites.

Advertisement
LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 04: The Dodger Stadium COVID-19 testing site, which is the largest in the U.S. reopened Monday morning January 5, 2021 after a weekend closure for restructuring to alleviate traffic in the area. The site has administered 1 million COVID-19 tests since May, according to Mayor Eric Garcetti. Residents in the area have expressed concern about traffic caused by the site, so it was closed over the weekend to be restructured and for testing operations to be rerouted using more parking lot area to hold vehicles Dodger Stadium on Monday, Jan. 4, 2021 in Los Angeles, CA. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

California

L.A. to turn Dodger Stadium into a COVID-19 vaccine site this week

Testing operations at Dodger Stadium, the largest coronavirus testing site in the U.S., will end Monday, according to the mayor’s office. Officials hope to eventually vaccinate 12,000 people a day there.

Jan. 10, 2021

“We want to get out vaccine as quickly as we can in California, starting with those who are going to be in charge of vaccinating the rest of us, making sure that they’re protected and safe on the front lines of the surge, on the front lines of the vaccine sites, on the front lines of the testing centers, but then also that key focus on really driven by equity,” California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said.

Disneyland is also set to become a mass vaccination site this week, the first such location in Orange County. The Orange County Board of Supervisors made the announcement on Monday.

The county also expanded the group of people eligible to be vaccinated against the virus to include residents of at least 65 years of age on Tuesday.

The list of those approved to administer the vaccine now includes dentists and pharmacy technicians.

Newsom added that the focus is on vaccinating the vaccinators and “making sure we’re taking care of our most vulnerable and congregate facilities remains our top priority. We’re not abandoning equity. We’re not abandoning exposure. We’re not abandoning the issue of risk. We’re not abandoning the issue of age.”

The arrival of the vaccine has offered renewed hope, including for the University of California system, which announced on Monday that it plans to have students back on its 10 campuses, including UC Irvine, for mostly in-person classes for the fall 2021 term.

LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 02: Historic Royce Hall, one of the four original buildings on UCLA's campus in Westwood overlooks a mostly empty UCLA campus which is closed to the public because of the Covid pandemic. The financial impact of the pandemic on UC campuses is fueling calls among some chancellors for a tuition increase to address what they call the worst financial crisis of their careers. But at UCLA, Chancellor Gene Block has committed to no pandemic-driven layoffs through next June, as the campus is redeploying idled workers to areas of need. For instance, UCLA food service workers who no longer make hundreds of thousands of meals for on-campus students, are preparing food for low-income families. UCLA on Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2020 in Los Angeles, CA. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times

California

UC, USC plan to have students back on campus in the fall for classes

The University of California plans to bring students back to its 10 campuses for mostly in-person classes beginning in fall 2021.

Jan. 11, 2021

“As the University continues to monitor the evolution of the pandemic, we are also carefully planning a safe return to in-person classes,” UC President Michael V. Drake said in a statement. “Current forecasts give us hope that in the fall our students can enjoy a more normal on-campus experience.”

Orange County reported 28 deaths due to COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, in data provided Tuesday by the Orange County Health Care Agency.

The healthcare agency also reported 3,824 additional infections, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases countywide to 195,685. The county has also experienced a death toll of 2,148 during the pandemic.

Area hospitals are currently treating 2,200 cases of the virus, with 535 of those patients being cared for in intensive care units.

The county reported 16,401 tests for the virus within the last day, which takes the total number of tests administered to 2,300,064. The healthcare agency estimates that 121,434 people in the county have made a recovery after contracting the virus.

Concerning the county’s virus transmission rates, Orange County has seven-day averages of 78.8 daily new cases per 100,000 residents and a testing positivity rate of 19.5%. Those statistics are being kept with a seven-day lag.

Tracking coronavirus in Orange County

The latest maps and charts on the spread of COVID-19 in Orange County, including cases, deaths, closures and restrictions.

Here are the latest cumulative coronavirus case counts and COVID-19 deaths for select cities in Orange County:

  • Santa Ana: 36,097 cases; 409 deaths
  • Anaheim: 33,201 cases; 442 deaths
  • Huntington Beach: 7,901 cases; 116 deaths
  • Costa Mesa: 6,609 cases; 61 deaths
  • Irvine: 7,448 cases; 30 deaths
  • Newport Beach: 2,783 cases; 33 deaths
  • Fountain Valley: 2,571 cases; 34 deaths
  • Laguna Beach: 599 cases; fewer than five deaths

Here are the case counts by age group, followed by deaths:

  • 0 to 17: 19,023 cases; one death
  • 18 to 24: 27,282 cases; five deaths
  • 25 to 34: 40,196 cases; 27 deaths
  • 35 to 44: 30,911 cases; 47 deaths
  • 45 to 54: 31,615 cases; 152 deaths
  • 55 to 64: 24,308 cases; 287 deaths
  • 65 to 74: 12,091 cases; 414 deaths
  • 75 to 84: 6,035 cases; 498 deaths
  • 85 and older: 4,103 cases; 717 deaths

Updated figures are posted daily at occovid19.ochealthinfo.com/coronavirus-in-oc. For information on getting tested, visit occovid19.ochealthinfo.com/covid-19-testing.

Support our coverage by becoming a digital subscriber.

NewsCosta MesaFountain ValleyHuntington BeachIrvineLaguna BeachNewport Beach
Andrew Turner

Andrew Turner is a sports reporter for the Daily Pilot. Before joining the Pilot in October 2016, he covered prep sports as a freelancer for the Orange County Register for four years. His work also has been used by the Associated Press and California Rubber Hockey Magazine. While attending Long Beach State, he wrote for the college newspaper, The Daily 49er. He graduated with bachelor’s degrees in journalism and history. (714) 966-4611

More on this Subject

Advertisement