EAST PROVIDENCE — Officials from East Providence hosted a ceremony Monday evening, May 24, at City Hall, where a tree was planted dedicated to the memory of residents who have lost their lives to the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) since the pandemic struck the area some 14 months prior.

Loved ones from families in East Providence so devastatingly affected by the pandemic joined the administration of Mayor Bob DaSilva, representatives of the City Council and members of the community at large for the brief, though touching event.

The mayor and Council President/Ward 1 member Bob Britto delivered remarks before a memorial stone was placed in front of a newly planted prime tree on the City Hall grounds acknowledging the nearly 200 city residents who succumbed to the virus when the outbreak took hold in approximately March of 2020.

The inscription on the plaque read, "In memory of East Providence residents whose lives were lost due to  the COVID-19  Pandemic...May they rest in eternal peace."

Local figures
According to the latest updated figures presented by the state Department of Health, 199 East Providence residents have died of the virus, ranking the city third in Rhode Island behind Providence with 527 and Woonsocket with 215.

Most of those city residents who passed away did so very early on during the pandemic as eldercare facilities here struggled to contain the spread of the virus.

In all, eight municipalities have suffered over 100 deaths related to the pandemic. Again according to the latest updated RIDOH statistics, a total of 2,704 Rhode Islanders had lost their lives to COVID-19 as of the middle of May 2021.

Vaccination pod
The East Bay regional vaccination pod, which for the last six weeks has occupied a 30,000 square foot space at Shoppers Town Plaza on Taunton Avenue in city, continues to see a steady stream of residents from each of the municipalities it was created to service with the COVID-19 inoculation, though far from its peak upon opening in mid-April.

The pod, for those who live in city, Pawtucket, Barrington, Warren, Bristol and Tiverton, has the capacity to deliver several thousands of shots each day, but that figure has gradually declined as the vaccination became more prevalent at other locations, like pharmacies and supermarkets.

East Providence Fire Department’s Emergency Management Agency Deputy Director/Emergency Services Director Captain John Potvin said the East Bay pod was averaging 300-600 vaccinations per day at the start. The pod has delivered approximately 6,700 inoculations since it opened. East Providence EMA personnel, upon the COVID-19 vaccination becoming available in December 2020, have administered over 22,000 shots in total.

The pod is now open on Mondays and Wednesdays each week, a slight change in schedule from the initial Wednesdays and Fridays. Capt. Potvin said for this past Wednesday, 70 appointments were on the books with the expectation to deliver shots to about 40 or 50 walk-ins. The East Bay pod, he added, is committed to remain operational until at least June 30.