Update at 8:24 a.m. Thursday: Brownsville officials say the online registration portal has been closed because capacity has been reached. The city asks the public to check for future clinics at btxcares.com.

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Original story: A COVID-19 vaccine clinic focusing on people 65 years of age and older will be held on Friday in Brownsville.

Pre-registration begins online on Thursday at 8 a.m. at btxcares.com. Residents without internet access can call a helpline at 956-394-0012 for assistance with registration.

“There's a series of questions that will be asked on the website and when you complete that registration, you will then be confirmed a spot,” said Brownsville Public Health Director Dr. Art Rodriguez.

The clinic will administer 2,000 vaccines on Friday at 6 a.m. at the Texas Southmost College ITEC Center located at 301 Mexico Blvd.

Residents must present a photo ID and remain in their vehicles. No walk-ins will be accepted at the vaccination clinic.

On Monday, the city was designated as a vaccine hub by the state as a result of the city purchasing storage freezers and pivoting the physical aspect of their testing program.

“We're purposely over building the system with refrigeration and with lanes so that we can accommodate up to 40,000 dosages and up to 25 lanes,” Rodriguez said. “At this point, this first one is really a test run for us."

The city is already looking into the next phase, which includes bringing vaccines to people who may not be able to leave their homes.

“It is very criteria based, but it certainly is something we've already started to look at,” Rodriguez said. “We think it's something we're going to be able to roll out pretty quick.”

The operation is a joint partnership between the city of Brownville, Cameron County, TSC and Brownsville ISD.

For more information, visit www.btxcares.com.