MILAN (Reuters) – Italy plans to set up primrose-shaped pavilions in its art squares to distribute vaccines against the highly contagious disease caused by the corona virus novel during a campaign starting next month.
Italy, the first western country to be infected, overtook Britain on Saturday to announce the highest official death toll from COVID-19 in European countries.
Rome Special Commissioner for COVID-19 Emergency Situations Dominico Arguri confirmed on Sunday that Italy hopes to vaccinate community health workers and residents of homes for the elderly with a dose of 1.8 million in mid-January.
Prior to that, European countries are expected to select a date for the codified launch of vaccine campaigns across the continent, Arkuri told a news conference.
There will be about 300 distribution sites in Italy, with the vaccine campaign peaking at 1,500, Arguri said.
“At the beginning of the campaign we could create a few gazebos, but these structures are there when all the Italians start vaccinating,” he said.
The Italian government had hoped that most Italians would be vaccinated by September.
Architect Stefano Bori, who designed the primrose-shaped pavilions, said his team had chosen the flower, which highlights the arrival of spring, with the slogan “Italy takes rebirth with a flower”.
A total of 64,036 people have died in Italy since the eruption in February, and 64,026 in Britain, according to reports on Saturday.
Bori, who is famous for designing Milan’s vertical forest skyscraper, said the pavilions would be solar – powered and built of recyclable materials such as wood and fabric.
They will be easier to remove elsewhere and rebuild, he said.
Bori said he did not charge anything for his project, and that other professionals and companies would come forward to provide free services and products, which would reduce the cost of the initiative.
Valentina Saw Report; Editing Bernadette Palm