Caribbean Netherlands get first Covid vaccines

The Caribbean parts of the Netherlands received their first coronavirus vaccines on Wednesday. The KLM plane delivering the vaccines was met with a water salute on both Bonaire and Aruba, NOS reports.

Bonaire Lieutenant Governor Edison Rijna was delighted with the arrival of the vaccines, calling them the beginning of this pandemic's end. The shipment of 4 thousand Pfizer vaccines is intended for nursing staff, general practitioners, specialists and other healthcare professionals. People over the age of 60 will also get the vaccine. The vaccination of healthcare staff will begin at the Kralendijk hospital on Monday. A week later, the first of the elderly population will be vaccinated.

Aruba's Prime Minister was at the airport to receive the first shipment of nearly 12 thousand Pfizer vaccines. The island will start vaccinating its healthcare workers immediately. Next week, the crisis team expects to vaccinate the first over-60s.

Curacao also received its first vaccines from the Netherlands on Wednesday, though when vaccinations on the island will start is not yet clear. Curacao will also follow the Health Council recommendation to first vaccinate frontline workers and then the elderly and people who are in risk groups. 

The islands of Sint-Maarten, Sint Eustatius and Saba will get their first vaccine shipments on Friday. Instead of the Pfizer vaccine, which has to be stored at -75 degrees Celsius, the Moderna vaccine will be used on these islands. That vaccine can be stored at just below freezing and can be kept for longer before expiring.