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With the second highest covid infection rates in the state, Rockland County has earned its very own state-run vaccination facility, slated to open April 1st at the RCC fieldhouse. The site is in development and you can start making appointments there beginning 8 am today. Rockland County Executive Ed Day says…finally!

Area lawmakers from all over the political spectrum were pounding the drum for a vaccination site here in the county. Rockland assemblyman Ken Zebrowski said earlier this month that not having a centralized site made it more difficult for people to make vaccination appointments…

The RCC site is expected to be open from 8 am to 7 pm, seven days a week.

Look out seniors, the young-uns are coming for the vaccine now, too. Here in New York starting today at 8 a.m., residents 30 and older will be eligible to get their COVID shots. Then on April 6th, those 16 years of age and older can get it, as well.

COVID-19 by the numbers now, here in Rockland, we lost three more to COVID since Friday, the total is 917. We’ve got 59 hospitalized confirmed with coronavirus, and 1,644 active cases. Our total case count is 43,237, that’s 496 more than Monday.

New York State will establish an additional state-run mass vaccination site in Rockland County at Rockland Community College’s Eugene Levy Fieldhouse to further grow New York’s vast distribution network. The site is in development and is expected to open Thursday, April 1 with appointments opening at 8 am Tuesday, March 30. Hours of operation for the Rockland Community College site are 8 am to 7 pm, seven days a week.

Appointments can be made here: https://am-i-eligible.covid19vaccine.health.ny.gov/ 

“The opening of Rockland Community College as a mass vaccination site will have an immediate impact on our county as we continue to grapple with one of the highest infection rates in New York State. I appreciate all of our residents and the local elected officials who spoke out in support of our efforts of opening a mass vaccination site and I thank the Governor and his staff for listening to our concerns and stepping up to help protect the people of Rockland. We are making progress in our battle against this disease and with the increased availability of vaccine through this site we expect a significant benefit to local residents. I encourage Rocklanders to take advantage of this opportunity to get vaccinated right here in their home county; we spent months fighting for this site and now we must put it to use,” said Rockland County Executive Ed Day.

“I am grateful that Rockland County will finally be home to a state-run mass vaccination center. After months of lobbying the State Department of Health and the Governor’s office, and introducing legislation to make it happen, New York has finally decided to put a state-run mass-vaccination site in Rockland, at Rockland Community College. This long overdue decision will have a tremendous positive impact on ensuring equal access to the COVID vaccine for Rockland residents. I urge all eligible Rocklanders to sign up for a vaccine appointment as soon as possible so we can finally put this pandemic behind us,” said Senator Elijah Reichlin-Melnick.

“Rockland County has been an epicenter of this pandemic with some of the highest infection and death rates. Without access to a large, centralized center, we’ve seen significant gaps in vaccination rates that has allowed the virus to continue to rage on. This vaccine center will help us secure an appointment for folks that have been unable to travel or navigate the system and ensure the vaccine gets to every corner of the County. Hopefully this center is the tool we need to start to come out of this health crisis and build back our community,” said Assemblyman Ken Zebrowski.

Officials continue to wait for a full report on the status of the alarm system and cause of the fire that destroyed an assisted living facility in Spring Valley last week that killed one resident and a volunteer firefighter. At a press conference Friday, Chief Ken Conjura of the Columbian Fire Engine Company No. 1 in Spring Valley said the fire alarm system at the Evergreen Court Home for Adults was set to “test” though he could not explain why. Chief Conjura said despite the danger, his volunteers did their job as they were trained to do…

Published reports have speculated the system was shut off during Passover cleaning earlier that night, but the owners of the facility have said the alarms were working. On Friday’s “Who Wants to be a Volunteer” program, Rockland County Director of Fire and Emergency Services Chris Kear said he was concerned about the mental well-being of all the first responders involved…

Kear said the overwhelming support from the community has been helpful to everyone involved. In a ceremony Friday afternoon, Spring Valley Mayor Alan Simon and Legislator Toney Earl thanked first responders for their efforts and bravery. Meanwhile a GoFundMe page set up for the family of fallen firefighter Jared Lloyd, a 15-year veteran of the Spring Valley’s Columbians Fire Engine Co. No. 1, has crossed the half-million dollar mark, it’s currently at $546,272 since it launched Wednesday evening. A funeral service will be held at Palisades Credit Union Park in Pomona at 11AM Saturday morning.

A GoFundMe page set up Wednesday evening for the family of fallen firefighter Jared Lloyd, a 15-year veteran of the Spring Valley’s Columbians Fire Engine Co. No. 1, is now just about $73,000 shy of its half-million dollar goal, as area media speculate as to the cause of the fatal blaze. The town of Orangetown and other locations are serving as drop-off points for new clothing and toiletries for displaced seniors from the Evergreen Court Home for Adults. Supervisor Teresa Kenny says there’s a collection box in the lobby of town hall…

Rockland Assembly representatives Ken Zebrowski and Mike Lawler, along with state senator Elijah Reichlin-Melnick have opened their offices as collection points for those displaced by the fire. In addition to their offices, you can bring items to town halls in Ramapo and Clarkstown, Village halls in Spring Valley, Suffern and Nyack, or to the MLK Center in Spring Valley. We have a list of the places you can donate items and link to Jared’s GoFundMe Page.

Meanwhile, there have been several published reports that say an automatic alarm system at Evergreen was not connected to the county’s central dispatch at the time the fire broke out. Rockland County Director of Fire and Emergency Services Chris Kear urges everyone to wait for the investigation to be completed and issue a final report.

Jared Lloyd, a 15-year veteran of Spring Valley’s Columbians Fire Engine Co. No. 1 was identified yesterday as the firefighter killed in the fire that leveled the “Evergreen Court Home for Adults” assisted-living facility in the village. He was 35 years old. Lloyd was among the first on the scene early Tuesday morning when the fire broke out. While the Rockland Medical Examiner’s Office still had more work to do following the completion of an autopsy, County Executive Ed Day said in a press conference yesterday morning we all need to be there for those who are grieving…

Rockland’s Director of Fire and Emergency Services Chris Kear said finding the body after the building collapsed was a major challenge…

Sheriff Lou Falco said he is working with a number of agencies to investigate what caused the blaze…

One of the residents taken to an area hospital was still listed in critical condition, others suffered minor injuries and were taken to other assisted living facilities. One Evergreen Court resident died, but no information was released about him. Two firefighters were injured, one of them spent the night at the hospital with elevated carbon monoxide levels in his blood.

A GoFundMe page has been set up for Lloyd’s family, including his son, Logan, who turned six yesterday, and five year-old Darius. More than $230,000 has been raised since it launched last night. We have a link to the page in this news article on our website.