A new, temporary COVID-19 testing site is set to open in northeast Calgary on Friday, as a way to ramp up testing in the city.
Alberta Health Services said Wednesday the temporary walk-up site will be set up at the McKnight Westwinds Park and Ride lot at 6200- 36 Street N.E. and will start administering tests on Friday.
The testing site will be open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and anyone going for a swab must have an appointment, AHS said.
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“This facility is for those with COVID-19 symptoms or those who are close contacts of a confirmed COVID-19 case.”
Calgarians can make an appointment for a test using the online booking tool, or by calling 811.
“It is expected that the number of daily tests conducted at this site will reach 500 by early next week with the goal of completing as many as 2,000 tests per day when the facility is operating at full capacity,” AHS said.
The testing site will be set up in a trailer in the south parking lot of the McKnight Westwinds LRT station, and people are asked to follow the signs leading to the trailer, and then wait in their vehicle until a nurse calls them up for their swab.
Clients are reminded to bring their Alberta Health card and photo ID, wear a face mask and use hand sanitizer.
AHS did not say how long the temporary assessment centre would be open.
As of Wednesday, Alberta had 20,938 active cases of COVID-19 across the province, with 1,839 new infections being reported on Wednesday.
Labs completed 18,976 tests on April 27.
Sixty-three per cent of Alberta’s active cases were variants of concern, as of Wednesday.
