[ad_1]
Margaret Keenan, 90, the first patient in the UK to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, administered by nurse May Parsons at University Hospital in Coventry, England, on Tuesday, December 8, 2020.
Image Credit: AP
London: Margaret Keenan, a 90-year-old grandmother, became the first person in the world to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine outside of a trial on Tuesday when Britain began vaccinating its population.
An early riser, Keenan received the vaccine at her local hospital in Coventry, central England, on Tuesday morning at 0631 GMT, a week before her 91st birthday.
Britain began rolling out the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech on Tuesday, the first Western country to begin vaccinating its general population in what was hailed as a decisive milestone in defeating the coronavirus.
“I feel very privileged to be the first person to be vaccinated against COVID-19,” Keenan said.
“It’s the best anticipated birthday gift I could wish for because it means that I can finally look forward to spending time with my family and friends in the New Years after being alone for most of the year.” Keenan, known as Maggie to her friends, is a former jewelry assistant who retired just four years ago. He has a daughter, a son and four grandchildren.
Video footage shows her wearing a medical mask along with a blue T-shirt and cardigan as she receives the shot from Nurse May Parsons.
Parsons said the past few months had been tough for everyone, but it seemed like there was now light at the end of the tunnel.
Britain is the European country most affected by COVID-19, with more than 61,000 deaths, but Prime Minister Boris Johnson hopes to turn the tide of the disease by launching the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine before the United States or the European Union.
The mass inoculation will fuel hope that the world is turning a corner in the fight against a pandemic that has crushed economies and killed more than 1.5 million, although ultra-cold storage and complicated logistics will limit its use for now.
