SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 6: The quick response of a team of health workers saved 830 doses of vaccine in a medical centre in a California county.

Around 2 am on Monday the compressor of the covid vaccine freezer at the Adventist Health Ukiah Valley Medical Centre in Mendocino County, Calif., failed, according to NPR.

The vaccines can only be used for 12 hours once they're removed from refrigeration of 36 to 46 deg Fahrenheit or if power fails. This should have triggered an alarm, but that failed.

It was by sheer chance that a satff physically found at about 11:45 am that the freezer was not working. That meant the vaccines had just two hours life left. The seasoned staff experienced in managing crisis situations wasted no time in contacting as many health centres, nursing homes and emergency vaccine clinics as possible to prepare beneficiaries without notice so that the vaccine can be used before expiry. And they did it.