Confidence in the coronavirus vaccine is slowly growing, but the Coastal Health District says Wednesday that about half of the area’s first responders are getting a dose.
At Savannah Fire Rescue, the local chapter of the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF Local 574) says 36 percent of firefighters have been vaccinated since first responders became eligible for the vaccine.
“For our department, being a young department, we’re one of the more healthy departments in the city, so for a lot of us — we’re not in those at-risk categories for severe complications,” said Vice President Johnny Hinton. He says it’s one of several reasons why so many first responders in the union are opting-out of vaccination.
“These men and women go out every day and serve their community and I think it’s a testament really to just serving that community even more,” he explained.