Hundreds line up outside Winnipeg pharmacy for Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine

People started lining up outside the Shoppers Drug Mart in Osborne Village on Sunday evening fora walk-in dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine on Monday.

Laura Woodward-Normand arrived at the pharmacyat 8 p.m. on Sunday, ready to spend a cool night outside so she couldget her second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

"The night was quite cold, but we had a bunch of blankets and cuddled together, fell asleep a few times, drifted off for a few minutes," she said.

By Monday morning, hundreds of people were in the lineup, which eventually went down Osborne Street to Roslyn Road, then along Roslyn until it turned down Nassau Street toward River Avenue.

"I couldn't believe that people were camping out, but Idon't blame them.I mean, it's anxiety-inducing, trying to ensure everybody's safety," said Cherilyn McMurray, whowas there with 12-year-old Makaela.

A sign posted on the door of the pharmacy said it would begin administering doses at 9 a.m. A security guard told CBC News the pharmacy had 500 tickets for vaccinesand those would be the only people able to get shots on Monday.

Last week, the provincial government said it planned to ramp up walk-in appointments at supersites, and doctor's offices and pharmacies were also going to get tens of thousands of doses.

However, on Thursday, the province announced it will be receiving fewer than half of the shipments of Pfizer vaccine it had been expecting for the first week of July, forcing it to limit the number of Pfizer appointments available. Pfizer is the only vaccine approved for people 12 to 17 years old.

Several people who spoke to CBC News had vaccination appointments booked at sites outside the city, but opted to get a shot closer to home.

McMurrayhad been searching for a second dose for Makaelaand waited 2 hours at a vaccine clinic on Friday. She had an appointment booked at the supersite in Morden, Man., in the third week of July.

"But with the upcoming shortages, I figured it was just better to be sure she got her second dose," she said.

She first heard about the walk-in doses at the Osborne Shopperson social media and called the pharmacy to confirm.

"I understand why people would camp out and even me, I'm really eager to get my second shot so I can be at school with my friends for hopefully next year," Makaela said.

Woodward-Normand had an appointment in Brandon on Friday.

"I wanted to get in as soon as possible, especially with the delta variant becoming more common," she said.

WATCH | Hundreds in line at Winnipeg Shoppers Drug Mart hoping for walk-in dose of COVID-19 vaccine:

Scott Falkingham arrived at the Shoppers at 11:30 p.m. on Sunday. He had booked an appointment in Thompson next Monday, but heard about the walk-in doses from his brother. He was also worried about possible shortages.

"[I'm] hoping to get a Pfizer shot today don't really want to be mixing things, I'm not really sure what that's all about yet."

Health officials expectedto receive about 105,000 Moderna vaccine dosesby the end of last week and another 200,000 by the end of this week.

As of Sunday, 71 per cent of Manitobans age 12 and up had receiveda first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 24 per cent were fully vaccinated.

The province aims to have at least 70 per cent of eligible Manitobans get a first doseand 25 per cent of eligible people get both doses of a COVID-19 vaccine by July 1.

WATCH | Manitoba hits important mark in pandemic fight, reopening plans

Manitoba hits vital mark in pandemic fight and reopening plan

3 years ago

Duration 1:49

Manitoba has now reached its first vaccination goal under the provincial government's plan to ease some COVID-19 restrictions by July 1.