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DURHAM — Thousands of people — many standing in a nasty rain — waited for hours Wednesday at the Durham National Guard Armory on Stadium Drive to get their H1N1 (swine) flu shots.
Parents and their children made up a large chunk of the crowd as thick lines formed outside and inside the armory.
Gayle Harris, director of the Durham County Health Department, said 2,700 doses of the vaccine were available Wednesday and 2,351 were distributed. More will be available in coming weeks, she said.
The shots began at 10 a.m., but dozens of people with umbrellas waited outside in the wind-whipped rain starting about 8 a.m.
Harris was impressed by the turnout.
“I’m pleased with the diversity that’s here,’’ she said. “I think it’s representative of our community. I think the message is out, and we see that we have children and adults here, so I’m very pleased.’’
She said more clinics are to come.
“This is only the beginning of this initiative,’’ she said. “And it is a learning process for us, because we’ve not done mass immunization clinics in a very long time.’’
She said the department plans similar clinics at least once a week as the vaccine arrives at the department.
“Right now, we’re working with limited supplies of vaccines, and our ultimate goal is to have vaccines for everyone who wants to get vaccinated. And we have 250,000 people in Durham, so that’s a lot.’’
Harris said the H1N1 flu is “very widespread’’ in Durham, but she didn’t have exact figures. She did say, however, that 10-12 percent of those visiting an emergency department in Durham have flu-like illness. “So that’s a huge percentage,’’ she said.
As of Tuesday, she said, 48 swine flu-related deaths had been reported in North Carolina, but she wasn’t sure if any were from Durham County. Two were pregnant women and two were children, she said.
“I’m working with Duke to create a map showing where people live who have shown up in the emergency department and outpatient department with flu-like illnesses,’’ she said. That could help health officials target outreach efforts, she added.
Swine flu symptoms include a fever of at least 100 degrees and a cough or sore throat, chills, body aches and, in about 25 percent of the cases, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.
Harris said the average person might not be able to distinguish between the seasonal flu and the H1N1 flu. But she said the swine flu “is what’s circulating now.’’
