Hundreds of Covid vaccinations canceled over festival on injection site

GGD Amsterdam canceled hundreds of vaccination appointments because the injection site will be unavailable for two days due to two festivals, the health service confirmed to RTL Nieuws.

The NDSM Loods, one of four Amsterdam vaccination locations, will be used twice for festivals at the end of July - for the Pleinvrees and De Zon festivals. The GGD initially thought it would be able to keep vaccinating while the festivals were happening, but it proved impossible.

"It cannot be combined with the festivals on the NDSM site," a spokesperson for GGD Amsterdam said to the broadcaster. "It's not going to work, so we're canceling all appointments."

Hundreds of people have received an SMS saying that their appointment is canceled and they will have to call the GGD to make a new one, according to the broadcaster.

On social media, people responded surprised that vaccination appointments were being canceled in favor of a festival. "Aren't we vaccinating in order to be able to go to festivals?" One person wrote on Twitter.