About a hundred Orange County firefighters received the Moderna coronavirus vaccine Saturday morning, bringing relief to an agency whose ranks have been hit hard by the growing number of COVID-19 cases in the community.

Three stations were set up Saturday morning to vaccinate firefighters with the Orange County Fire Authority, after the agency received a shipment of the Moderna vaccine earlier this week.

“We’ve been waiting a long time for the vaccine to come up. The coronavirus is on the rise — it has kind of changed the way we do business,” said Captain Ray McQueen with OCFA. “Being able to come down here and get the vaccine offers us another layer of protection. When we have extra layers of protections, it allows us to better and safely do our job and help everyone around us.”

The fire department has been working with Orange County Health Care Agency to prioritize first responders to be among the first to be vaccinated.

Much like the vaccine made by Pfizer, the Moderna vaccine will also be provided through two injections, given 28 days apart. However, unlike the Pfizer vaccine, the Moderna one does not need to stored at extremely low temperatures.

Meanwhile, Orange County reported nearly 3,500 new coronavirus cases on Christmas Eve. New coronavirus numbers weren’t reported on Christmas Day due to the holiday.

Erin Myers reports for the KTLA 5 Morning News from Irvine on Dec. 26, 2020.