Hamilton pop-up COVID-19 testing centre opens to meet surge in demand

A much-needed, pop-up COVID-19 testing site is opening in Hamilton today.

A Thursday release from St. Joseph's Hospital Hamilton, the city and Hamilton Health Sciences said the temporary testing centre will be located at Mohawk College. It will administer up to 1,000 tests a day and will operate seven days a week, from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Still, no walk-ins are allowed.

In keeping with Ontario government guidelines, appointments must be made in advance for all testing sites," reads the release.

Appointments can be made online at HamiltonCovidTest.ca and information on who is eligible for COVID-19 testing at hamilton.ca/coronavirus/covid-19-testing.

Hamiltonians have been raising concerns in recent days about lack of access to testing centre appointments. This means people with COVID-19 symptoms are - hopefully - self-isolating, but also, without access to either a testing appointment or a rapid antigen test kit, stuck in limbo.

The demand for testing in Hamilton, as with many regions, is beyond current capacity," states the release. Currently, those seeking testing as symptomatic or close contacts of COVID-19 positive individuals are booking many days out, and often there are no appointments available."

The release reminds people that if they have symptoms or are a close contact of someone who tested positive for COVID-19, they should follow public health guidelines and self-isolate.

Hamilton's other two assessment centres are: St. Joe's Mountain Testing Centre on Upper James Street and Hamilton Health Sciences COVID-19 Assessment Centre in west Hamilton.

Combined, the three locations will be able to test up to 2,700 people daily.

Katrina Clarke is a reporter at The Spectator. katrinaclarke@thespec.com