With nothing on their agendas for months to come, music festival organizers in Belgium want to use their know-how to help the country's coronavirus vaccination campaign.
The Belgian government has set a goal of vaccinating about 70% of the country's population, about 8 million people, when approved COVID-19 vaccination shots become available.
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With nothing on their agendas for months to come, music festival organizers in Belgium want to use their know-how to help the country's coronavirus vaccination campaign.
Enjoying a strong reputation in the music world, Belgian festival experts have proven experience in both building huge pop-up structures and in crowd management.
One of the hardest-hit countries in Europe, Belgium has reported some 577,000 confirmed cases and more than 16,500 deaths linked to the virus.
A worker demonstrates how a temperature sensitive shipment of medicine or a vaccine is kept cold with dry ice at the Swissport Pharma Center in Machelen, Belgium, Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. Safely delivering COVID-19 vaccines, one approval has been made, will be the mission of the century for the global air cargo industry. The Swissport Pharma Center, which opened in Oct. 2019, has a state of the art temperature controlled warehouse space dedicated specifically to pharmaceutical shipments going out of Brussels airport. (AP PhotoVirginia Mayo)
Trucks are parked outside the loading bays at Swissport Pharma Center in Machelen, Belgium, Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. Safely delivering COVID-19 vaccines, once approval has been made, will be the mission of the century for the global air cargo industry. The Swissport Pharma Center, which opened in Oct. 2019, has a state of the art temperature controlled warehouse space dedicated specifically to pharmaceutical shipments going out of Brussels airport. (AP PhotoVirginia Mayo)
As the vaccines are expected to arrive in multi-dose vials for shots to be administered all on the same day, Belgium health authorities are planning to vaccinate people in groups as much as possible. The task will pose many logistical challenges, including the creation of vaccination centers that festival organizers say they can help set up.
Cargo workers demonstrate the cold chain handling of medicines and vaccines as they drive a pharma transport vehicle at Swissport Pharma Center in Machelen, Belgium, Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. Safely delivering COVID-19 vaccines, once approval has been made, will be the mission of the century for the global air cargo industry. The Swissport Pharma Center, which opened in Oct. 2019, has a state of the art temperature controlled warehouse space dedicated specifically to pharmaceutical shipments going out of Brussels airport. (AP PhotoVirginia Mayo)
Enjoying a strong reputation in the music world, Belgian festival experts have proven experience in both building huge pop-up structures and in crowd management.
With the music industry hit hard by the pandemic's economic, several festivals in the French-speaking region of Wallonia and the Brussels area have created a federation to better defend their interests. They have a large network of technicians who currently unemployed and are ready to help out.
“Our sector has been at a standstill for many months, and our many staff are eager to bring their creativity and dedication to the fight against coronavirus," said federation president Damien Dufrasne.
Cargo workers demonstrate the cold chain process for the handling of medicines and vaccines as they place boxes into a temperature controlled shipping box at Swissport Pharma Center in Machelen, Belgium, Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. Safely delivering COVID-19 vaccines, one approval has been made, will be the mission of the century for the global air cargo industry. The Swissport Pharma Center, which opened in Oct. 2019, has a state of the art temperature controlled warehouse space dedicated specifically to pharmaceutical shipments going out of Brussels airport. (AP PhotoVirginia Mayo)
One of the hardest-hit countries in Europe, Belgium has reported some 577,000 confirmed cases and more than 16,500 deaths linked to the virus.
Last week, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said COVID-19 vaccinations could start in the European Union's 27 nations before the end of December. The commission, the EU’s executive arm, has agreements with six potential vaccine suppliers and is working on a seventh contract. The deals allow it to purchase over 1.2 billion doses, more than double the population of the EU.
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Cargo workers demonstrate the cold chain handling of medicines and vaccines in a temperature controlled warehouse at Swissport Pharma Center in Machelen, Belgium, Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. Safely delivering COVID-19 vaccines, one approval has been made, will be the mission of the century for the global air cargo industry. The Swissport Pharma Center, which opened in Oct. 2019, has a state of the art temperature controlled warehouse space dedicated specifically to pharmaceutical shipments going out of Brussels airport. (AP PhotoVirginia Mayo)
A worker demonstrates how a temperature sensitive shipment of medicine or a vaccine is kept cold with dry ice at the Swissport Pharma Center in Machelen, Belgium, Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. Safely delivering COVID-19 vaccines, one approval has been made, will be the mission of the century for the global air cargo industry. The Swissport Pharma Center, which opened in Oct. 2019, has a state of the art temperature controlled warehouse space dedicated specifically to pharmaceutical shipments going out of Brussels airport. (AP PhotoVirginia Mayo)
Trucks are parked outside the loading bays at Swissport Pharma Center in Machelen, Belgium, Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. Safely delivering COVID-19 vaccines, once approval has been made, will be the mission of the century for the global air cargo industry. The Swissport Pharma Center, which opened in Oct. 2019, has a state of the art temperature controlled warehouse space dedicated specifically to pharmaceutical shipments going out of Brussels airport. (AP PhotoVirginia Mayo)