LOUIS — By noon Saturday, the first city-sponsored mass vaccination event in north St.

Louis was well on its way to its goal of administering 1,750 first doses of the Moderna vaccine.

Louis Health Director Fredrick Echols said he thought the event was an important step in increasing vaccination numbers in north city.

“Early in the pandemic, north city had the highest burden of COVID-19 cases; that continues to be the case today,” he said.

Before Saturday, the city had administered about 10,000 first doses of the vaccine and about 4,000 second doses.

Echols said about 60,000 people have registered with the city to be vaccinated.

Louis mayoral spokesman Jacob Long said city officials are planning a similar mass vaccination event for next weekend in south St.

Echols said he is aware of complaints from some residents that the city vaccination rates appear to be lagging behind more rural areas of the state.

For example, Putnam County, in northern Missouri, was advertising extra doses of the vaccine Saturday on Facebook.

The doses needed to be administered Saturday to avoid expiration, the county said.

Louis area, the seven-day rolling average for new hospital admissions linked to the virus slid from 45 per day to 43, according to updated numbers released Saturday by the St.