Vaccination campaign against COVID-19 kicks off in Beijing

Medical workers are on patrol inspection through the observation area for people who have just recieved COVID-19 vaccine shots at an inoculation site in Chaoyang District, Beijing, capital of China, Jan. 5, 2021. Along with more than 70 of his colleagues in the food processing sector, Mr. Wu (whose given name is omitted for privacy protection), 40, boarded a shuttle bus that would bring them to a site of vaccination at about 1 p.m. on Tuesday. Wu, who works for a company involved in pastry, bakery and cold chain transportation, said all his colleagues except those with unsuitable physical conditions had registered for the COVID-19 vaccination, and he was particularly happy to be noticed for immediate inoculation. Having lined up for admission, been told of precautions, and signed a letter of informed consent, Wu was ushered in the vaccination area where his first shot of vaccine was administered briefly and smoothly. A member of staff showed him out of the observation area and sent him off after a 30-minute stay to confirm no abnormal reaction occured in his body. After 14 days, Wu and his colleagues will receive a second dose of the vaccine. He felt honored to be among the first batch to receive the vaccine at the beginning of the year. "Lots of people in Beijing consume bread and cakes we provide, so we bear the responsibility for the health of our customers and that of our own," Wu said. A city-wide campaign of vaccination against COVID-19 was kicked off as of January 2021 in Beijing, where Chaoyang District alone would see some 200,000 people in nine specific groups with higher infection risks receiving the vaccines at 43 sites. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao)