Portugal started Tuesday its vaccination plan against the A/H1N1 influenza in Valenca do Minho municipality, north of the country.

The first vaccines were given to the staff of the health center of the municipality, as a way of proving the safety of the vaccines, local media reported.

On Tuesday noon, the authorities began vaccinating pregnant women at their second and third quarter of pregnancy.

It is estimated that some 300 students in Valenca do Minho have been infected with the A/H1N1 virus.

According to health authorities, the outbreak could be due to the municipality's proximity to the Spanish region of Galicia, which saw a fast increase in the number of infections in the past weeks.