Man Drives Car Into COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic Workers in California

Authorities in California are searching for a man they say attacked two vaccination clinic workers over the weekend.

The attack occurred at a COVID-19 vaccine clinic that had been set up at the site of the former Santa Clarita Senior Center, per a regional NBC report from Christine Kim. Around 4:30 local time on Saturday, the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station started getting calls of “an assault with a deadly weapon.”

Early reports suggest the incident occurred following an argument between the man and two clinic employees. After the argument, the man is said to have returned to his vehicle and struck an employee. The man is then alleged to have driven over signs at the clinic before going on to “hit a second worker with his car.” It wasn’t made clear what initiated the argument.

The vehicle has since been described to the public as a gray four-door sedan, though details remain scarce. A rep for the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed the vaccine clinic was forced to close after the attack, which saw one employee being treated for minor injuries. The clinic was also closed on Sunday.

Complex has reached out to reps for the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, as well as the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station, and will update this post accordingly.

News of the California-set act of violence against vaccine workers comes as the U.S. continues to push for a higher nationwide vaccination rate, a necessary goal which has been greatly complicated in some regions due to rampant misinformation.

On that note, please get vaccinated as soon as possible.