NORTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - Hundreds of South Floridians are rolling up their sleeves and getting their shot at prevention at different vaccination sites.
Ed Knutt survived COVID-19 and got his dose of the vaccine at Miami-Dade College’s North Campus site in Northwest Miami-Dade, Friday morning.
“Getting the shot today was a big deal,” he said as he fought back tears. “Now I can, hopefully, get back to some sort of a normal life, or I’m not afraid to be out in public.”
This day represents a huge up in his life after about six months of being down.
“I don’t remember half of it,” Knutt said. “When I woke up after my second coma, I literally did not know who I was looking at when I saw a picture or a mirrored image of me.”
Knutt had lost 65 pounds, had been on a ventilator, was in a coma twice and suffered a heart attack — all after being diagnosed with COVID-19 last year. He left rehab in mid-January.
“I was one of the naysayers,” he said. “When this happened, I was totally blown away. I really didn’t think that I’d make it this far.”
Getting his shot at protection at the Miami-Dade College North Campus site was quick and easy.
“I am very impressed,” he said. “I asked for the Johnson & Johnson and literally, excluding my sitting time, 20 minutes, I had walked through everything.”
The site has received high praise from the recipients 7News has spoken to over the past couple days following a confusing and frustrating start to the week when people who didn’t qualify for the vaccine were getting it.
“It was pretty quick,” said Cindy Freire-Fernandez after receiving her first Pfizer dose. “Very, very helpful, very friendly.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he expects an increase in shots in the next few weeks as the positivity rate continues to decrease. Starting next week, Floridians 60 and over can receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
“We could be at a position sometime in April where it’s just available and people can get it,” he said. “Is that the vaccine starting to help out? You know, maybe, we don’t know.”
Miami-Dade County announced nearly 500,000 people have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Broward County Mayor Steve Geller, meanwhile, said 65% of the county’s senior population has been vaccinated against the virus.
The White House COVID-19 Response Team said hospitalizations across the U.S. are down 11% and deaths have dropped 19%. They expect every American to have access to a vaccine by May.
In the meantime, Knutt urges everyone to keep up with safety precautions and take the virus seriously.
“If we don’t, we’re going to be having lingering effects of this for a long, long time,” he said. “If we all follow through with what we need to do, this thing can be nipped in the bud.”
The Miami-Dade College North Campus mass vaccination site is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.
A mobile vaccination site will be set up on Saturday at 10 a.m. at Olinda Park in Miami. Officials plan to distribute 500 doses of the single-shot Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine to those who qualify.
For more information about vaccination sites in Florida, click here.
To check for vaccination appointment availability at Publix locations, click here.
Anyone with questions and concerns about the coronavirus can call the Florida Department of Health’s 24-hour hotline at 1-866-779-6121.
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