Weekly News Digest
産経オンライン英会話 ニュースディスカッション教材
A COVID-19 vaccine clinic was held at an unlikely location in Kita-ku, Osaka, on September 13 and 14. A vaccination program for employees and residents was conducted for two days at the Freedom Tenroku Pachinko Parlor in Tenjinbashi-suji shopping district, known to be one of the longest shopping streets in Japan.
The move is part of a workplace initiative encouraging the vaccination of company employees and their families, and often including residents of the neighborhood around the company’s location. Yet even so, it’s quite unusual that the choice of venue for the vaccines would be pachinko parlors.
On any normal day, a cacophony of sounds from the slot machines dominates the shop. But on this day, people waiting to be inoculated sat quietly in front of the pachinko machines, one in every other seat to respect “social distancing”.
A man in his twenties working for a nearby manufacturer said, “It’s basically the first time that I have come into a pachinko parlor.”
Looking relieved, he added, “I finally got the vaccine.”
A total of 1,500 vaccines had been prepared for this day’s program, and all were booked up before September 14, the second day of the vaccination.
Shinjiro Naito (50) of Avance Co. Ltd., which manages the shop said, “a pachinko parlor tends to give a negative impression, but I’m glad I was able to contribute to the community.”
日本一長いと言われる大阪市北区の天神橋筋商店街近くにあるパチンコ店「フリーダム天六店」で９月１３日、従業員や商店街の組合員、近隣住民らを対象にした新型コロナウイルスのワクチン接種が始まった。職域接種の一環だが、パチンコ店を会場とするのは珍しい。
普段はパチンコの音が響く店内だが、この日は接種を待つ人がパチンコ台の前に１席おきに静かに座った。近くのメーカーに勤務する２０代男性は「ほぼ初めてパチンコ店に入った。やっとワクチンが打てた」とほっとした様子だった。
計１５００人分が用意され、１４日も行われるが予約は全て埋まっている。運営会社アバンスの内藤新二郎さん（５０）は「ネガティブな印象をもたれがちなパチンコ店だが、地域貢献ができてよかった」と話した。