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S.D. County Runs Mass Vaccination Drill to Prep For Major Outbreak

San Diego County held a mass vaccination drill at San Marcos City Hall on Wednesday. It was a test to check the county's ability to respond to an infectious disease outbreak or a bioterrorist attack.

S.D. County Runs Mass Vaccination Drill to Prep For Major Outbreak

San Diego County held a mass vaccination drill at San Marcos City Hall on Wednesday. It was a test to check the county's ability to respond to an infectious disease outbreak or a bioterrorist attack. KPBS reporter Kenny Goldberg has more.

The drill involved flu shots. Members of the public had to pass through various stations before they received a shot. Health workers pretended to triage people on the way in, and look for signs of adverse reactions on the way out.

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Dr. Wilma Wooten is the County's Public Health Officer. She admits the county might not be able to protect the public in all cases.

Wooten : It would depend whether it's a virus or bacterial infection, and whether or not we have antibiotics, or vaccines already available. And if not, then we would have to wait for researchers to develop them.

In a real health emergency, the county would dispense pills or shots at 17 locations. The County believes it could process about a thousand people an hour at each site.

Kenny Goldberg, KPBS News.