A group of Marines and sailors from Camp Pendleton are now in Texas helping to man a COVID-19 vaccination site.
The state-run, federally-supported site at Globe Life Field – the home of the Texas Rangers in Arlington – is expected to serve about 3,000 people this week. It is unknown how long they will be needed.
The Marines and sailors from the 1st Marine Logistics Group are registered nurses and other military medical professionals. The group of 140 are part of a broader task force that arrived in Arlington on Feb. 19, following the severe cold weather that gripped the region. The group first shadowed the Arlington Fire Department on Sunday and began administering COVID-19 vaccine doses then.
“Over the past year, the Marines and sailors of (the 1st Marine Logistics Group) have been called upon to lead from the front, adapt to complex and uncertain situations, and represent our nation in our finest naval traditions; this mission is no different,” Brig. Gen. Roberta Shea, the commanding officer, said. “We are proud to help to maximize the safe and timely delivery of vaccines to our fellow Americans who are suffering the effects of this global pandemic.”
The effort is the second federal aid mission for Marines from the 1st Marine Expeditionary unit in a few months.
In September, Marines went to Northern California for a month to fight wildfires. There, too, their assistance was authorized by the Department of Defense.
The request to help with the vaccination site came from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The task force also has troops providing medical support at vaccination sites at Cal State Los Angeles, in Arizona and for the Navajo Nation.
Source: Orange County Register
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