Almost two thousand people received a first dose of a COVID vaccine at a walk-in clinic at the Walker Hall in Troon yesterday.

With COVID cases surging in South Ayrshire, NHS Ayrshire and Arran set up the clinic in the town in order to keep the virus at bay.

And the people of Ayrshire turned up in force, a grand total of 1,896 people received shots at the make-shift vaccine centre, some waiting for two hours to receive their jag.

The large number of people who travelled to the centre caused traffic chaos, which led to the police advising motorists to stay away from the area.

But the operation has been deemed a great success and it is hoped that more people will continue to get vaccinated in the days and weeks ahead so that the surge in cases in the area does not translate to increased hospital and ICU admissions.

On the success of the clinic Lynne McNiven, Director of Public Health, said: "NHS Ayrshire and Arran has seen an incredible response to our local mass vaccination programme, and are continuing to vaccinate residents according to the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) prioritisation as set out nationally.

"We want to vaccinate as many people as possible as swiftly as possible and to achieve this we are using a blended model of opportunities for people to receive their vaccine. This includes appointments at mass vaccination clinics, drop-in and outreach clinics, home visits for people who are housebound and care home residents, as well as in some cases vaccines being given to hospital inpatients.

"A drop-in opportunity took place at the Walker Hall in Troon on Sunday, June 6, 2021. Against the backdrop of rising cases of COVID-19 in our communities, and variants that are believed to be more transmissible, the offer for vaccination was opened to any adult in Ayrshire yet to have a first dose.

"The clinic was extremely well attended, with 1896 vaccines delivered on a drop-in basis, to people aged between 16 and 65. Thank you to everyone who attended and to the vaccination team’s hard work on the day.

"There is an additional drop-in opportunity for Ayrshire residents taking place today (June 7, 2021) at Cumnock Town Hall until 6 pm.

"We are currently vaccinating 30 to 39-year-olds by appointment at local clinics. If you haven’t received your blue envelope in the post yet, please call the national helpline on 0800 030 8013 8 am- 8 pm, seven days a week. Appointment letters will be sent out throughout this month for the under the 40s.

"In the meantime we would encourage local 18 to 29-year-olds to use the pre-registration system for vaccine, which is open until June 11 2021. Please visit https://www.nhsinform.scot/under30register to do this."