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Indiana National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Stringer interprets for Afghan guests during medical screening, Friday, Sept. 10, 2021, at Camp Atterbury in Indiana.
U.S. Army/Sgt. Dylan BaileyNearly 400 Afghan evacuees arrived at Camp Atterbury over the weekend. One hundred fifty were expected to arrive Thursday, and another 100-plus are expected in the next four days.
They’ll spend the next few weeks getting processed at the base before outside organizations can begin work settling them across the U.S.
Part of that process has been making sure evacuees are up-to-date on their vaccines, since many are from rural areas of Afghanistan.
Camp officials recently completed a campaign to vaccinate over 6,100 evacuees against measles, mumps, rubella, and chickenpox.
Flu vaccinations will begin this weekend, as will second doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.
Navy Captain Dr. Luke Zabrocki said “nearly 100 percent” of those who are eligible have received a COVID shot.
About 40 percent of the 6,700 evacuees are 14 and younger, according to Aaron Batt, the Department of Homeland Security official overseeing Camp Atterbury operations.
Around 330 people have been approved to leave Camp Atterbury so far.
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