At the end of last week, over a thousand City of Newburgh residents were vaccinated against COVID-19, between a county-run site at SUNY Orange and another pop-up vaccination site at the Newburgh Armory Unity Center.

On February 26, approximately 1,170 people received the Pfizer vaccine at the county’s point of distribution at SUNY Orange. The vaccine was administered by Montefiore St. Luke’s Cornwall. The day before, the county vaccinated 1,300 residents with the Moderna vaccine at another county-led site on Hatfield Lane in Goshen.

“I want to thank the leadership and staff at Montefiore St. Luke’s Cornwall for assisting the County in providing these critical vaccinations to our residents and for their continued dedicated work and resiliency during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus said in a press release. “The ongoing public health emergency has solidified the importance of our partnership with MSLC and other local hospitals and healthcare providers, and we know we will always come together to assist the community.”

It was the county’s first time administering the Pfizer vaccine. Neuhaus reported that Orange County “continues to administer 100 percent of the vaccine doses provided to us by the state.”

“This mission was accomplished,” wrote City of Newburgh Mayor Torrance Harvey in a Facebook post about the vaccine distribution. “It was extremely hard to pull off. Especially with such high demand for limited supplies of vaccines in the country.”

“We proved that we are fully capable of distributing a large number of vaccines in a day,” said Orange County Legislator Kevindaryán Luján, who volunteered at the SUNY Orange site. “This should show the Governor that we are ready and able to receive more vaccines. While I still think that more work needs to be done to get people signed up, it was an important first step.”

The SUNY Orange site was the third pod that the county facilitated last week. The first one was on February 23, vaccinating 2,100 residents with their second doses. Additionally, the 370 Newburgh residents that were vaccinated at the Newburgh Armory Unity Center three weeks ago received their second doses this weekend.

The City of Newburgh should continue to see an increase in vaccine supply. Harvey reported that Cornerstone Family Healthcare is now an official federal site, meaning it should receive “a large dump” soon.

To sign up for the county’s vaccination list, visit vaccination.orangecountygov.com or call the Orange County Office for the Aging at 845-615-3700.