CHESAPEAKE, Va. — The water surrounding Hampton Roads is filled with workers on international cargo ships. They travel from one port to the next.
“The pandemic is not just obviously in the United States. It’s on a global scale,” explained Public Health Emergency Manager Jerry Tucker.
Tucker said that’s why leaders with Chesapeake Health Department are offering free COVID vaccines to workers on international cargo ships. They are providing the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
“The majority of our efforts have been here in Chesapeake,” explained Tucker. “We've probably had 10 events with various international ships when they pull in, but we have been to Norfolk twice.”
Tucker said so far between 50 to 60 cargo ship workers received a COVID-19 vaccine. He said some of them are from places like Germany and Ukraine.
“These sailors that come in, if we can vaccinate them and in some way contribute to herd immunity when they return to their home country, I think the better off we will all be,” he said.
Tucker said many of those workers live in countries where access to the COVID vaccine is a challenge.
“Whenever we can identify a country that has an access issue to the vaccine when they pull into our international port we are more than happy to engage with them and offer them the vaccine free of charge,” Tucker explained.
Tucker said most sailors are thankful that local health departments are offering the vaccine for people who don’t even live in the United States.
The Chesapeake Health Department is also offering free COVID-19 testing for those working on international cargo ships.
Tucker said the plan is to keep offering COVID-19 vaccines to international cargo ship workers until the need is no longer there.