By Laura French
WASHINGTON — Washington D.C. officials have announced that five members of the D.C. Fire and EMS will be among the first in the district to receive the COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday.
The five members, dubbed “The First Five” in a district press release, are Acting Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly, Medical Director Dr. Robert Holman, Lts. Joseph Papariello and Keishea Jackson and Firefighter-EMT Julio Quinteros.
“Today, we have hope. After a long and tragic nine months, help is finally on the way,” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said in a statement. “The First Five are sending a strong message about the importance of this vaccine to protect them, their families and loved ones, their patients and coworkers, and our entire city.”
The vaccines will be distributed by Kaiser Permanente, which is expected to receive its first shipment of doses on Wednesday. The district will receive an initial allotment of 6,825 doses that will be distributed between Kaiser Permanente and five other hospitals.
“I’m getting vaccinated for my city. In the last nine months, I’ve seen COVID devastate my department,” said Jackson, one of The First Five, in a statement. “I’ve seen my brothers and sisters go into the hospital. I’ve seen them with severe symptoms – things we never thought we would see. I’m getting vaccinated for my coworkers, I’m getting vaccinated for my family, and I’m getting vaccinated to make a change.”
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