Many incentivized to get coronavirus vaccination at Elizabethtown fire station

ELIZABETHTOWN — An event that paid people to get a coronavirus vaccination was successful and drew a couple hundred people on Saturday, a county commissioner says.

Arthur Bullock said the new fire station in Elizabethtown had many people coming to capitalize on the incentive program. The Mount Calvary Center for Leadership Development acquired a sponsor for $100 VISA gift cards, and also offered $10 to those tested for COVID-19.

The offering came one day after Bladen County recorded its first death in a week following a surge of 15 fatalities in the first 10 days of the month. The daily report on Friday from the Health Department said the number of active cases was down to 231, with seven people hospitalized.

The county has recorded 373 positive tests this month and 523 recoveries in addition to the 16 deaths.

Last week, four public schools in the county were on the state Department of Health and Human Services’ reports for clusters. They included Emereau: Bladen Charter School, and from the Bladen County Schools district, West Bladen High, Bladenboro Middle and Bladenboro Primary. The next report is due Tuesday.

Elizabethtown Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center remained on the DHHS outbreak report last week.

Vaccinations remain strongly encouraged.

The county Health Department is taking appointments for vaccination and can help with those who are homebound and need transportation. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are available at the 300 Mercer Mill office for those ages 12 and up; weekday hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., with an extension on Tuesdays to 7 p.m.

Questions can be directed to 910-872-6291.

COVID-19 drive-thru testing is offered by OptumServe at the Health Department weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. If weather is inclement, the site is closed.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, on its website Monday morning, says Bladen County has 30.2 percent (9,895) of the total population fully vaccinated and 39.4 percent (12,906) partially vaccinated.

Bladen and all 99 other counties in the state remain listed as red, or showing a high level of community transmission. The period measured is Sept. 12 to Saturday for case rate, and Sept. 10 to Thursday for percent positivity.

According to the coronavirus tracker of Johns Hopkins University, available on BladenJournal.com, more than 42 million confirmed cases and 673,000 deaths are counted in the U.S. The second-highest case total is in India, with more than 33.4 million.

There have been more than 228.6 million cases worldwide, with more than 4.6 million deaths.

Statewide, DHHS says 3,573 are hospitalized.