Zimpapers Logo

PUNTA ARENAS. — In the heart of Chile’s far-flung Patagonia, the windswept town of Laguna Blanca has overcome Covid-19 through a rigorous vaccination campaign carried out by the country’s health ministry.

The remote cattle-raising community, situated in the southern Magallanes region, has gone several months without a single case of infection and was the first in the country to complete its vaccination campaign against Covid-19 , using the CoronaVac vaccine developed by Chinese pharmaceutical firm Sinovac.

According to officials, the process required “exceptional” planning due to the rough terrain and harsh weather, with just over 200 local residents spread over 3 600 square km of rugged pampas whipped by steady winds and heavy snowfall.

Gloria Vidal, owner of a small grocery store, told Xinhua all she wanted “was for the vaccine to arrive” in the least populated commune in mainland Chile, which nevertheless suffered Covid-19  outbreaks at the height of the pandemic due to its proximity to Punta Arenas, the region’s largest city some 100 km away. Vidal was one of the first to receive the vaccine in Villa Tehuelches, a small settlement established in 1967, where half of Laguna Blanca’s residents live.

Fernando Ojeda, mayor of the town, told Xinhua that during the peak months of the pandemic, sheep breeders were confined to their vast ranches.

Today, “there is peace of mind for working” thanks to the special protocols created to support Cacique Mulato, the only livestock cooperative in Chile, located in the area.

Jaime Arteaga, director of Laguna Blanca’s primary rural healthcare center, explained to Xinhua that the greatest challenge in the vaccination process was the long distance between the vaccination sites and the sheep farmers, as well as the weather, which required everything to be carried out quickly to avoid the buffeting winds and snowstorms that occur from April to August.

“It was a chess game, it was not easy. One looks at the figures, and 300 vaccinated people seems like nothing, but you would have to know the commune to realize that vaccinating 300 people is a tough journey, which requires days of effort,” said Arteaga, adding relatives of locals who had arrived in the remote area seeking refuge from the pandemic were also inoculated.

Arteaga recalled six-hour van rides through the hillsides by teams of healthcare workers to reach the most distant and isolated ranchers along routes carefully planned to maintain the vaccine’s cold chain.

“It took us less than a month, with little resistance from the people, to vaccinate everyone with the Sinovac vaccine,” he said.

The Magallanes region was the first to enter a post-pandemic opening phase in Chile a few weeks ago, according to the health ministry. — Xinhua.