LUBBOCK, Texas — On Tuesday, Director of Public Health, Katherine Wells estimates about 1,000 people cancelled their coronavirus vaccine appointment due to weather. This as the city saw below freezing temperatures and falling snow throughout the day.
Littlefield resident, Amanda Hodge, said Tuesday’s weather created problems as she had tried for weeks to get an appointment.
“There were white out conditions and you couldn’t see the road and even in town people were driving like maniacs,” Hodge said.
Living about 45 minutes away from the Hub City, Hodge said her doctor scheduled an appointment for Tuesday afternoon.
“I was supposed to go today at two and I was so excited,” Hodge said.
However, after seeing road conditions take a turn in both Littlefield and Lubbock, Hodge decided it wasn’t worth it for her to try and make the drive.
“I’d rather be alive and do those fun things later than to try to risk going to Lubbock and trying to get the shot,” Hodge said.
The city of Lubbock reported 1,763 people received vaccinations on Tuesday. Wells said their goal is usually 2,500 people.
“It’s definitely slowed our clinic down today,” Wells said.
The city also added additional staff from Lubbock Fire Rescue to help people get in and out of the civic center. Wells said Lubbock Health Department staff are also working to reschedule appointments.
“Even with the bad weather, it’s important for us to get these vaccines out to individuals,” Wells said.
Braving the cold, Collette Solpietro said she came from Wolfforth to get her second dose of the vaccine.
“I used to live up north, so this weather doesn’t scare me too much,” Solpietro said.
She said she came across issues trying to drive down 19th St., so she took another route. She said she was concerned about other drivers, but Solpietro said getting her vaccine was too important to miss.
“If you can get an appointment, it goes on without a hitch. They’ve just done a fabulous job,” Solpietro said.
Wells said the health department is rescheduling appointments for Thursday and Saturday to avoid a backlog. She said they have overbooked the clinic so expect longer wait times.
“I anticipate that our clinic on Saturday’s gonna be very busy,” Wells said. “We tried very hard to get people in and out of there quickly some of those wait times might be a little bit longer on Saturday and basically we’ve overbooked it to be able to move people who couldn’t come because of the snow.”
To reschedule a vaccine appointment, call the Lubbock Health Department at 806-775-2933.
